More than half of America’s employees say they’re stressed at work, every day, according to Gallup. That’s why addressing the stress and burnout crisis in the world’s workforce should be at the top of each employer’s “To-Do” list.
And it is a crisis. In its State of the Global Workforce Report, Gallup found staggering rates of worker disengagement and unhappiness, including that 60% of the world’s workforce reported feeling emotionally detached at work. It’s no wonder that, as a Deloitte study showed, 57% of employees are considering quitting their job for one that better supports their well-being.
The causes are both complicated and familiar: a global economy where people are expected to be “always on.” And working from home, for those privileged to do that, means the boundaries between home and work are blurred even further.
The good news is that there is an effective, scientifically proven tool we can use in our daily lives. Research consistently shows that if we can build time to reset and recharge, we can interrupt the sort of cumulative stress that leads to burnout.
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Short breaks can increase workers’ mood and improve productivity
And the even better news is that it takes very little time to do this. A recent North Carolina State University study documented the value of micro-breaks. Researchers found that employees’ energy increased after only five-minute breaks. So did the likelihood they would set and achieve work goals. Another study, in the Journal of Applied Psychology, found that call center workers who took micro-breaks had a mood boost that translated into better sales performance.
Even short breaks between meetings help employees stay focused and energized. A study by Microsoft’s Human Factors Lab on virtual fatigue found that taking short breaks between scheduled back-to-back meetings stopped cumulative stress from building up and gave workers’ brains a chance to “reset.”
Many workplaces offer mental health days and sick days. But a Mental Health America study shows that employees are often reluctant to take advantage of these partly because of the stigma attached or because they are afraid they’ll be punished for taking time off to attend to their mental health. Building regular breaks into the fabric of the workflow helps ensure everyone is better able to recharge and stay engaged.
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At Thrive, we use what we call “Thrive Time.” It’s based on the recognition that, of course, getting results and meeting deadlines often requires putting in extra time and going the extra mile. Thrive Time is what allows us to sustain that. It means taking time off to recover and recharge after you’ve met the deadline. It could be a few hours, a morning, a day or more. And it doesn’t count as paid time off. That’s because we want to make it clear that recovery isn’t separate from work. It’s an essential part of work.
And one of the most popular tools on our Thrive platform, which is available to employees in the flow of work in Microsoft Teams and Slack, is Thrive Reset. It’s based on the neuroscience that shows we can course-correct from stress in just 60 to 90 seconds. Hundreds of Resets are available on themes like gratitude, movement, mindfulness and reframing problems.
We’ve built Zoom-free days into our company culture
At Calm, we prioritize the importance of employee breaks, especially taking them collectively as a company. According to Calm Business’s 2023 Workplace Mental Health Trends Report, employees in the U.S. request more mental health days as their top mental health benefit. To address this need, Calm offers five mental health days per year where the entire business takes a break, encourages regular breaks, provides unlimited paid time off, and incorporates daily mindfulness sessions and Zoom-free days into our work culture. Additionally, all company-wide meetings begin with a 5 to 10-minute Calm session, allowing employees to center themselves before engaging in work-related discussions.
Every company has its own culture and has to devise a strategy that works best for its employees. Taking a moment to breathe and reset is essential to sustaining high performance without burning out.
Stress and burnout, and declines in employee mental health, come with financial as well as psychological costs. The World Economic Forum found we lose as many as 200 million workdays due to mental health issues each year. That’s about $16.8 billion in lost productivity. The American Psychological Association estimates workplace stress costs the American economy more than $500 billion a year. And Gallup found that businesses that operate with an engaged workforce earn 23% higher profits.
Let’s give employees a break. In response to our world of endless e-mail, back-to-back Zoom calls and 24/7 hustle culture, we need to redefine how we work. We’re not talking about working less. We’re talking about making it easier for employees to work better, more productively and with more joy and less stress.
Arianna Huffington is the Founder and CEO of Thrive Global. David Ko is the CEO of Calm.
