How short breaks can help us stay focused on the work we really love
By Dr. Phoebe Long Franco
I’m sitting at my computer right now, multiple tabs on one screen, my email open on another, and my phone right next to me.
In the middle of writing a sentence for this post, I hear a “ding”- a coworker has texted to reschedule a meeting.
I think for a moment about what to say back to her. Then I attempt to finish a sentence. But I can see out of the corner of my eye a new email arrived on my other screen and I look to see what it says. It seems urgent, so I respond.
Needless to say, writing isn’t going well.
I know I’m not the only one who can spend several hours switching between tasks like this, accomplishing small, urgent things that make the day fly by.
But when I spend too much of my time on small tasks, I end my work day feeling unsatisfied and drained.
I was never fully focused on one thing for very long and I don’t feel connected to the values that make work more than a paycheck to me, like being challenged, collaborating with others, and being creative.
Our diminishing attention spans
As a society, our capacity to attend to any one task at a time has diminished since the rise of the internet, as Gloria Mark explains in her new book Attention Span.
A lot of us are required to switch tasks constantly at work. We respond to emails, texts, and notifications, often on multiple devices. But constant task switching (checking email, then responding to a text, then looking something up on the internet) spends our limited cognitive resources.
When we’re fatigued, we are even less able to avoid the internal and external interruptions that get us off track towards completing our goals.
In healthcare, precious cognitive resources are used up by inefficient documentation systems. Electronic health records (EHR) are a well-documented source of frustration and workload burden among clinicians, particularly when they’re not designed well. In some studies, reducing their administrative burden helps clinicians feel more satisfied in their work.
How to fuel our ability to stay focused
Workplaces can redesign processes to be more efficient and less mentally burdensome.
There are also small actions we can take ourselves to replenish our cognitive resources, so that we end our work days feeling more accomplished and energized.
Mark cites several studies showing that taking short breaks from our highly focused work throughout the day can help us get back to work more alert. Three effective breaks are:
Easy, rote activities (chores, hobbies, gardening, etc.)
Social Interaction
Physical Movement
Little acts of resistance
In Resiliency Training, we encourage people to think about these breaks as “small, daily gifts” to ourselves. More radically, we describe these breaks as “little acts of resistance” because taking a short break may interrupt the unspoken norms and work processes of the environment we work within.
For instance—are you on a team that eats lunch at their desks while answering emails? A small daily gift to yourself might be to eat lunch outside.
Working in an environment that prioritizes moving quickly all day without pausing for a break? Taking moments throughout the day to drink water can signal to ourselves and others we value our health.
In an attention economy, where so many apps and advertisers are vying for our attention, even spending five minutes of a break not on our phones is a little act of resistance.
These small, regular breaks throughout our work day can reduce our overall levels of stress, help us resist the distractions that deter us from our goals, and even boost our creativity, as Mark explains.
Recently, I’ve made a goal to spend just five minutes outside every day paying attention to whatever I hear, see, feel, or smell. I’ve noticed that this small amount of time outside, which requires some physical movement away from my phone and computer, makes time slow down and helps me feel more in control of my day.
What small, daily gift can you give yourself today as a break from your fast-paced routine? Or, what little act of resistance can you do to show yourself and perhaps even those around you what really matters to you?
And if you’re someone who can influence work processes and systems for others, how can you use this influence to allow others to take regular, restorative breaks that will fuel their energy to do the work they really love?