50 Ways To Take A Break (Infographic): Brain Breaks for Adults

This fantastic “50 Ways to Take a Break” infographic gives some quick ideas for when we need a work break. Maybe you’re thinking, “C’mon, we know how to take breaks.” So yeah, I know you know you know how to take breaks. Perhaps you even already do the Pomodoro Technique. But here’s my question for you:

Do you actually take breaks? Really, do you?

Here’s the deal:

We KNOW we need to take breaks. When googling keywords for this article, one of the top Google searches was “how many breaks in a 8 hour shift by law.” That’s a dirty little sentence with poor grammar, but it shows that people know they need to take a break now and again. The problem is that busy professionals who strive for excellence tend to avoid breaks.

Table of Contents

Why It’s Hard to Take a Break

via GIPHY

Here are some reasons that people are reluctant to take the breaks they need to take.

Their employer may be uninformed about the laws surrounding work breaks.
Employers are often unaware of the science behind how important it is to allow staff to take breaks that go above and beyond the legal requirements.
Americans are highly competitive and we will sometimes sacrifice our own health and well-being so that we can be “better” than our peers.
The fact is, every minute counts and we’re just too busy.

It’s not always easy to find a way to take breaks, but your life literally depends on it.

Why Breaks at Work Are Essential

Besides long breaks such as lunch breaks, which everyone knows they need, it’s equally important to take short brain breaks. If you’re eating lunch at your desk, hopefully, you’re reading while you eat and not working.

Here’s what you can gain from a short brain break.

When you return to your task, you will have improved concentration.
Taking short breaks at work helps you to fight the cognitive boredom that comes with too much work.
When you return to your task, you will have increased concentration.
You will be motivated by work-break patterns.
Taking breaks allows you to fight mental fatigue and “brain drain.”
When you stand up and move around often, you will have fewer physical ailments.

There are huge benefits to taking breaks at work—more on workplace happiness via @HubSpot https://t.co/y5lzewqV3e pic.twitter.com/CsEfYSEHsL

— Camryn Rabideau (@CamrynWrites) May 24, 2016

50 Ways to Take a Break at Work: How to Get Your Boss on Board

If you have an experienced and competent manager, they know the importance of work breaks. Specifically, a good boss will know that frequent and strategically timed breaks will increase employee productivity. If you’re super lucky, your boss may even be on top of mental health initiatives in the workplace.

However, if you need to show your boss some evidence of the effectiveness of work breaks, you can share this article with them (hi, boss!). You can even print the “50 Ways to Take a Break” infographic and ask your boss if you can hang it in the breakroom.

Also, here are some research links that show that taking breaks will increase overall employee productivity.

Pomodoro Technique

One of my favorite productivity techniques is the Pomodoro Technique. The Pomodoro Technique has perfectly timed breaks built into it.

Here’s how it works. Note: the 25-minute work period is called a “Pomodoro.”

Work intensely for 25 minutes (set a timer) – no phones, social media, or other distractions
Take a five-minute break
Work intensely for 25 minutes (set a timer) – no phones, social media, or other distractions
Take a five-minute break
Work intensely for 25 minutes (set a timer) – no phones, social media, or other distractions
Take a five-minute break
Work intensely for 25 minutes (set a timer) – no phones, social media, or other distractions
Take a 15-minute to 45-minute break (the length of the break depends on what works best for you)
Rinse and repeat to finish out your day, taking a long break after every four Pomodoros

That’s it, in a nutshell.

Here’s the best part:

You can do whatever you want on your breaks.

Seriously, do anything you want to do, as long as it takes only five minutes (and 15-45 on your long break). The “50 Ways to Take a Break” infographic has tons of ideas for your short breaks, and even some for your long break.

The timing of the Pomodoro Technique is somewhat flexible. For example, your Pomodoro can be 20 minutes, followed by a 10-minute break. Or 35 minutes, followed by a five-minute or ten-minute break. The point is to find your own sweet spot. However, don’t deviate too much. The science is solid, and 25 minutes is a good starting point for your Pomodoro timer.

Tools for the Pomodoro Technique

Tomato timer for Pomodoro Technique — Pomodoro timer, Marco Verch, Flickr CC BY 2.0

To make it easy, you can use a cheap tomato timer or an efficient Pomodoro TimeCube. If data is important to you, try a Pomodoro app to track your progress. You can also use a free web-based Pomodoro timer such as Tomato Timer.

I’m currently using PomoDoneApp because it syncs with my Trello and ToDoist.

Go in-depth with “The Time Chunking Method,” a great book about how to effectively use the Pomodoro Technique.