Taking Breaks

The Brain & The Rhythms of Life.

The Left Hemisphere = logic, rationale, reason, problem solving.

The Right Hemisphere = creativity, intuition, imagination.

We have a circadian rhythm, which determines our waking, and sleeping. We also have ultradian rhythms, which occur many times throughout the day. Every 90-120 minutes, we might notice a dip in energy and concentration. These troughs tend to occur when we need to take a break from concentration. When a person is working and thinking and concentrating, the left side of the brain is dominant. During the troughs, the brain needs to switch to right brain dominance for a while. Think of it as taking time to download, file and make sense of everything that has happened over the last hour or two. It is essential for your wellbeing and for peak performance that you recognize an ultradian trough and take a break. An ultradian trough might be noticed as poor concentration or finding yourself slipping easily into a daydream. Ignoring this natural period and forcing yourself to carry on without taking a break, causes stress hormones to be released into the body.

So, step one is Learn to take regular breaks. This does not mean that you walk away from your desk and continue to ponder that little problem – it means that you allow your brain to rest… or reset! Let it daydream, let it recall a pleasant time, let it do nothing. Respect the fact that your body knows better than you what it needs. Einstein said that he never once had a brilliant idea when he was thinking. All of his inspiration came during the moments when he was staring out of the window, daydreaming.

Maybe one of the skills you will need for this is to know when to say ‘no’ or to acknowledge to yourself and others when things get too tough. Ask for help and support. Remember, if you over ride your ultradian rhythm you will not achieve optimum performance.

Taking breaks is not a weakness.