Keeping motivated by taking a break

We were nearly finished with our camping trip over the long weekend, and today was especially exhausting. You all know what it’s like to be a grumpy mum. How many times have we reached our limit? We understand that if we do not take a break, we will suffer, as will everyone around us. Then there’s the excuse of not having enough time, and there’s still

dinner to make and so many tasks… Don’t we deserve a 10-20 minute break? not to mention that we can and should take a longer one of 30-60 minutes! These 10-60 minutes can make a huge difference in our motivation for the rest of the

day.I’d like to talk about how it affects me and my thoughts on taking a break.

Recognise you need it

“Huston, we/ you have a problem,” is not something we want to hear… The days are flying by, and we’re just trying to keep going because there’s so much to do, and then the stress sets in. Let’s just finish this last task and then relax with a cup of tea! You know you’re getting closer and closer to going insane, but you still have a little bit more to do. You’re aware that you can’t concentrate and that your eyes are itchy. You must take a break! When we are stressed, we are less productive, so you can allow yourself to take a breath, literally to breathe, even if you are at work. Sometimes we get so caught up in our work that we don’t realise we need to take a break. That is to say, even if we believe we are “fine,” we must initiate breaks. I believe we should stretch and breathe at least once an hour.

How do you feel? 

When you recognise the time, or as previously stated, every hour or so, simply stop what you’re doing and take a few minutes break. It’s difficult to just stop when you’re in the middle of something, but pushing yourself too far isn’t good either! Decide that you and your well-being are more important than anything else!

STOP. TAKE A BREATH.

You can actually breathe after taking a few minutes for yourself and feeling that something is open in your chest.

Plan what kind of break?

Only after I moved to Australia did I realise how important it is to plan ahead of time. As an Israeli, I used to be more “spontaneous” and less “planned.” However, the culture here has taught me to plan better. I started with planning playdates for my kids and playdates for me:) and then decided that breaks should be included in my daily schedule as well.

You won’t find me with a lot of free time, but my time must include breaks!
The breaks can be walks in the morning, yoga for about 40 minutes, or 5-15 minutes of meditation during the day, depending on what I need at the time. You won’t find me sleeping for an hour because that would make me even more stressed, but a walk, stretch, or a few minutes of meditation can provide me with energy and motivation.

Excuses move away!

What will prevent you from taking a break? You know what I mean… I’m in the middle of something, I have to deliver it now, if I don’t make it now, I’ll be even more stressed, etc… All I’m saying is that I believe we can be more effective if we stop pushing ourselves to our limits. I believe that each of us knows where our limits are, and once there, we’re there, and no one should get any closer to us! I invite you to consider it and see where you can incorporate these few minutes of relaxation.

Yes, I know your day is packed, but can that replace another gossip at work? or maybe a phone call? SMS? or do you prefer to spend your time on the internet? What about social media? What is more important than you?

Conclusion

In this post, I wanted to share my thoughts and experiences about pausing and how it impacts our effectiveness at work and with our goals. We can recognise that we require breaks, but sometimes we simply need to plan them. Breaks can be anything like a walk, meditation, breathing, or anything else that allows our brain to rest from working so hard.

We will always find reasons not to do things, and we are usually aware of it, so now it is time to be more aware of ourselves!