Are you one of those workaholics who just aren’t happy unless you’re at your desk 70 hours a week? Or maybe you have a very stressful job and are totally worn out mentally and emotionally after just 40 hours. If you haven’t already discovered this, here’s the deal. How much you accomplish is proportionate inversely to the number of hours you work without being interrupted. You may love your work but you have to make sure you don’t do the same thing too long. Given this, here are eight ideas for rejuvenating or reenergizing your brain.
Stand up
You should either get a standup desk or a new chair, preferably a standup desk. If you can alternate between your normal desk and a standup desk, you will stay more alert and more attentive.
Don’t try to multitask
Most experts say that a brain just can’t multitask period. When you think you’re multitasking, what you’re really doing is just switching very quickly between tasks. Research has shown that when you’re interrupted it will take you half again as long to accomplish whatever you were doing and you’ll make 50% more errors. For example, The New England Journal of Medicine discovered that people who drive when talking on their cell phone are 4 times more likely to create an accident. Why is this? It’s because you just can’t devote all of your attention to talking and driving simultaneously.
Using as many of your senses as possible
If you engage as many of your senses as possible in your work, your brain will be more entertained and you’ll be more alert. You could use colored pens and paper or experiment with aromatherapy. And, of course, you could always play background music.
Don’t decide too much the same day
This might seem a bit wild but if you shop in the morning then decide not to eat a desert at lunch and then try to choose between several job opportunities that afternoon, it’s possible you won’t choose the right job because you didn’t eat the desert. This is what Scientific American has found – that when you make choices, you deplete your brain’s abstract thinking, focusing and planning, which can negatively affect the decisions you make later.
Give yourself a break
Another study found that people maintain their focus much longer if they give their brains something else to think about every 20 minutes. This is called momentary deactivation. If you don’t seem as bright after long hours of work, your brain might not be totally exhausted. It just might need to concentrate on another thing for a while.
Take a power nap
Studies have pretty well proven that your talent for learning reduces as the day goes on. In fact, people who have taken an afternoon nap score 20% higher on memory tests.
Experience nature–even if it’s false
If you get away from work and walk around a park or even just look out your window at flowers or trees or view nature photographs, this causes a different kind of attentiveness than your standard work routine. If you feel a breeze, hear a bird song or watch clouds moving, this is called effortless attention. Studies have shown that you can concentrate a lot better after you have spent time in effortless attention.
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