Today I took the afternoon off and sat outside for over two hours in the sunshine on our patio. Desh even joined. It made me think about taking breaks.
Adam has been experimenting with the Pomodoro Technique and has been loving it. I also recently read Breanna’s post about working for two hours and taking one hour off. Last year, there was something deep within myself that would have thought, “Must be nice but I can’t do that.”
Focus isn’t something that I struggle with. I can focus for 14 hours straight without taking a break. That’s nothing worth bragging about. So as of late, I’ve been trying to figure out what balance and breaks look like for me. Is it working 4 days a week? Is it working every day but only a few hours? Is it taking a few shorter breaks throughout the day? Is it pre-scheduling various trips and vacations? Is it taking a whole month off every year?
I’ve owned my own business since August 2012 and I don’t give myself much flexibility. I don’t think outside the box and I can end up working all the time.
How do you handle breaks? Do you take a walk, restrict screentime, stop working at a certain time? Do you get away from your desk at lunch? Schedule vacations strategically? I’d love to hear.
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On nice days I try to walk at least a mile at lunch. If I really want to treat myself I find a cookie to enjoy mid-walk. It is one of my favorite things about working downtown.
Ohhh mid-walk cookie sounds absolutely amazing.
I’ve started a routine of 3 hours work, 1 hour off and it has been a huge help. I also don’t struggle to focus, but since I have started the 3 on, 1 off habit I notice I have more energy, and am able to offer more creative ideas and solutions to whatever I am working on. This 100 day project has forced me to take longer breaks as well to create which is eye opening. Since starting my business journey, I didn’t realize how little time I was spending on myself. Its a good gut check and has got me thinking about how to find that better balance!
No way! That’s amazing! So you do 2 different stretches of the 3-hour working? I love that you mentioned being able to offer more creative ideas. Do you set any guidelines to what you should be doing during the 1-hour break?