#Strategy: 8 Ways Goofing Off Can Make You More Productive … Research Suggests That the Longer you Keep your Rear End in your Chair & your Eyes Glued to your Screen, the Less #Productive you may Be.
I Offer this List of #Productive Ways to Goof Off During the Day & Evening. These Tactics will Boost your #Productivity & Sense of Well Being. But Beware Not to Overdo any of Them. Take too many breaks and you may enter the realm of procrastination.
One of my colleagues used to head to the men’s room and brush his teeth every time he felt a surge of writer’s block. He swears it did the trick. Another exits the building and walks around the block to clear his head. I sorely miss the mid-day yoga sessions that Forbes offered in its old offices in Manhattan. After an hour of downward dog, shoulder stand and corpse pose, my body was relaxed, my mind was clear, and I attacked my work with new energy.
A growing body of research suggests that the longer you keep your rear end in your chair and your eyes glued to your screen, the less productive you may be. Getting up from your desk and moving not only heightens your powers of concentration, it enhances your health.
John P. Trougakos, an associate professor at the University of Toronto’s Rotman School of Management has described how concentrating on one task is like using one muscle for an extended period. The mind needs a break, to rest and recover before it can exert again. Among other things, Trougakos recommends that workers take serious lunch breaks, to recharge with food and a change of scene.
James A. Levine, a professor at the Mayo Clinic, told the New York Times that we don’t take enough breaks. Sedentary work habits are as dangerous as a sedentary lifestyle at home. Levine likes the idea of your standing or even walking while you’re working, including during meetings. If you feel sleepy during the day, you should be allowed to take a nap, he says.
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Levine suggests that you work in concentrated 15-minute periods, divided up by breaks. “The thought process is not designed to be continuous,” he says. He points out that a short period of efficient work is much more valuable than long hours of wasted or partially productive time.
Then there is the power of daydreaming. Many of our most creative, productive thoughts come not while we’re trying to force them during long sessions at our desks, but at odd moments outside the office. For instance, there is the story of how Dan Wieden of advertising giant Wieden+Kennedy found the inspiration for the famous Nike “Just Do It” tag line late one evening, after reflecting on a conversation he had had with a colleague about the novelist Norman Mailer, who had written a book about convicted murderer Gary Gilmore. Gilmore’s last line before he was executed, “Let’s do it,” popped into Wieden’s head. Back at his desk, Wieden tweaked the phrase. But the idea had come in his off hours.
Many of us feel we shouldn’t waste time chatting with co-workers during the work day. But research has shown that talking with colleagues can increase your productivity. A team of MIT researchers led by Professor Alexander “Sandy” Pentland discovered that call center workers who took the time to converse with their co-workers, instead of just grinding away, got through calls faster, felt less tension and earned the same approval ratings as their peers who didn’t schmooze at the office.
After canvassing my colleagues, I offer this list of productive ways to goof off during the day and evening. These tactics will boost your productivity and sense of well being. But beware not to overdo any of them. Take too many breaks and you may enter the realm of procrastination.
1. Take a walk around the block.
Fresh air combined with a change of scene can reset blocked thought processes.
2. Take a nap.
Some offices offer this as a perk. Closing your eyes for a 15-minute catnap can be hugely refreshing.
3. Chat with a colleague.
Even if you only make small talk, a diverting conversation can give you a new perspective on the task at hand.
4. Run an errand
Like walking around the block, getting out of the office and taking care of business can give your mind a break and the exercise will get your blood flowing.
5. Brush your teeth.
The symbolism of removing decay and plaque can be especially potent when you are feeling sluggish.
6. Spend ten minutes checking Facebook, Twitter or other social media sites.
This is not as good for you as leaving your desk, but the mental distraction can offer a helpful break. Monitor your time however and don’t let yourself get sucked in for more than five minutes.
7. Go to the gym
If your company has an exercise facility, take advantage.
8. Go out to lunch
Judging from the habits of my colleagues, lunch out of the office is a dying American habit. But a healthy meal and good conversation can be nourishing on multiple levels.
This is an update of a story that appeared previously.
Forbes.com | June 15, 2015 | Susan Adams