If you are like the majority of Missouri workers, you take a few minutes every hour to do something other than job-related tasks. The law entitles you to breaks throughout the day to eat and to otherwise refresh yourself. At Thornberry Brown, LLC we often represent clients denied their breaks or penalized for taking them.
According to Fast Company, research indicates that short breaks throughout the day can improve productivity. However, the timing of your break and what you do during that time make a difference in effectiveness:
- Step away from your duties for a few minutes during the workday. Doing something that you want to do, as opposed to something you have to do, increases attention and reduces fatigue. Whether it is a work-related task, daydreaming or watching videos, the downtime can help you do your job better, with renewed focus.
- Enjoy a walk around the block or office building to kickstart your creativity. Exercise, whether outdoors or inside can help generate new ideas and boost energy levels, but studies show that walks through tree-filled landscapes have the most restorative power.
- Take a break from lunch plans. When you spend your lunch hour chatting or completing tasks you did not choose, it can be as tiring as not taking a break at all. Do something you want to do during lunch to keep energy levels higher.
Breaks taken earlier in the day, before fatigue sets in can help keep focus and energy levels higher than if you take a break after you are tired. If your employer encourages you to skip breaks or work through lunch, they may be hindering your performance and treating you unfairly. Visit our webpage for more information about this topic.
