Burnout and work · worksheet 105
Working hour after hour without stopping wears you out faster than you think. Short, regular breaks of a few minutes help keep your energy up until the evening.
Before you start
- What it is for: To keep your energy up throughout the day with short breaks.
- A minute at the end of the day, for a week.
- Short, frequent breaks restore you more than a single long break at the end. The brain isn’t made to concentrate for hours without stopping.
- Set a discreet alarm on your phone or computer: otherwise they get forgotten.
Prefer paper? Download the PDF to print (with a page for psychologists).
What to do with your results
Compare tiredness at the end of the day with the number of breaks: often just a few are enough to notice the difference.
If you find it hard
If you “don’t have time”, start with a single 3-minute break in the morning and another in the afternoon. If you can never stop, that is a sign of overload worth raising.
For psychologists
The PDF also includes a page for the psychologist: how to run the exercise in session, points to watch and scientific references. You are free to use it with your clients.
For psychologists: aim, audience and duration
Introduce regular micro-breaks throughout the working day (moving, breathing, going outside, changing task) to limit the build-up of tiredness.
Days without breaks, screen work, tiredness at the end of the day. Duration: A few minutes, several times a day.
References
Sonnentag, S. & Fritz, C. (2007). The Recovery Experience Questionnaire: Development and validation of a measure for assessing recuperation and unwinding from work. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 12(3), 204-221.
Maslach, C. & Leiter, M. P. (2016). Understanding the burnout experience: Recent research and its implications for psychiatry. World Psychiatry, 15(2), 103-111.
These worksheets do not replace therapy. If you are in distress or having suicidal thoughts, call your local emergency number (112 in Europe; 3114 in France, free, 24/7).
Free worksheet for non-commercial use: you may share it with credit to the author, without modifying it (Creative Commons BY-NC-ND 4.0 licence).
