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We all know that taking breaks is good for our brain and wellbeing — in fact we absolutely need to take breaks. It is just the way our brain and body is designed.
But oftentimes in the workplace this can be challenging — we get stuck into piles of work and our attention is constantly pulled in different directions. We may also feel we do not have the time for a break with work to be done and deadlines looming. I know that feeling well.
Enter the micro-break. The term micro-break has now entered the world of research and refers to short breaks — less than 10 minutes according to many studies but often as short as one minute. The idea is that a micro-break is precisely that, micro, short, and doesn’t interrupt workflow for too long, or can be completed quickly.
Interestingly there is some research to show that we tend to automatically increase our micro-breaks when fatigued. This can be getting a cup of tea/coffee a visit to the toilet, or a simple stretch and look out of the window.
The results into micro-breaks are generally positive but are they consistent? Enter Patricia Albulescu et al. who have just conducted a review of 22 studies from the last 30 years. These included multiple variations of micro-breaks: different work settings, in controlled experiments, different types of breaks…
