As a professional creator, procrastination is very much your enemy. It stops you from being able to produce high-quality work, it holds you back from meeting important deadlines, and it makes you more stressed out than you really need to be.

Unfortunately, as bad as it is to procrastinate, it’s also a very common problem that creative individuals like yourself have to contend with on a daily basis. Fear not, however, as there is something that you can do to fight back against this incredibly annoying plight — that being to take productive breaks from your work. This might sound counterproductive, but switching off from your projects will help you to reset your focus and, ultimately, it will get those creative juices flowing once again.

Creative Break Illustration by tubik.arts

Do you want to unearth two top tips on how to take effective breaks from your work? If so, be sure to read on.

Get moving

If you’re serious about taking productive breaks from your work, you should seriously consider exercising during the time you spend away from your workstation. Of course, the type of workout that you are able to partake in really depends on how long your brakes are. If you’re afforded the opportunity to leave your work behind for over an hour, you should go all out and hit your nearest gym. If your brakes aren’t quite so long, you can just go for a walk or a light jog instead. As long as you’re moving about and getting active, your brain will find it easier to refocus, you’ll no doubt experience an increase in your energy levels, and any stress that you are feeling will be sure to disappear.

Find an activity that distracts you

You can’t hit the reset button on your mind if you continue to think about all the work you have at hand. As lazy and unproductive as this may sound, you need to find an activity that allows you to switch off on your breaks. Only then will you truly be able to relax and, in turn, return to your work feeling ready to take on the challenges that lay ahead.

So long as it distracts you from your work for the time being, the break-time pastime that you opt to partake in really is your choice. If you enjoy reading, find yourself a good book and dive headfirst into it; if you enjoy listening to music, get yourself a pair of headphones and jam out for half an hour; or if you enjoy betting, check out Oddsshark.com and place your bets on the coming weekend’s sporting action. Again, as it long as it engages you enough to distract you from all the work that you have at hand, you are at liberty to do whatever you want during the time you spend away from your workstation.

illustration by Johanna Springer

If you want to climb your chosen career ladder, you have to work in a highly productive manner on a day-to-day basis. To ensure that procrastination doesn’t impact your ability to perform in an efficient fashion, it’s imperative that you take productive breaks from your work.