Stop. Sit. Breathe. Asana. | How Taking Breaks Can Increase Your Productivity at Work

by Kate Neri | Feb 14, 2017

Asana. 

And no, I’m not talking about Asana the productivity kind (which we use here at Syrup and highly recommend), but the yoga kind. Asana comes from the root word ‘as’ meaning to sit quietly.

Asana means to sit quietly.

This word never had a huge impact on my life until I started digging into my yoga practice. I soon began to realize this idea of sitting, quieting your mind, and letting the outside world go (even if for just a moment) was so powerful. What if I took this idea off of my mat and into my everyday life? What if I spent time each day stepping away from the madness and busyness of life to stop, sit, and breathe?

Guess what? I did, and have been ever since. It’s subtle (maybe no one around me notices) and brief (sometimes just a minute a day), but that time has brought clarity to confusion, calm to storms, peace during challenges, and creativity when I needed it most. And best of all, it has benefited my work life through improved productivity and better ability to serve my team and clients. It’s true! Even a 30-second microbreak can increase your productivity by up to 13%.

A 30-second microbreak can increase your productivity by up to 13%.

What if, for a moment, you just sat? No emails, no texting, no Instagram, but just for a minute, you stopped thinking, stopped doing, stopped worrying, and sat quietly?

What if nothing changes? Ah, but what if it changes everything?

I know, I know… you’re too busy. This is probably one of many tabs open on your browser and something you’ll be adding to your to-do list (so you can promptly check it off). But I challenge you — take a moment each day to asana.

Shut away everything and sit, quieting your mind to reflect and rejuvenate. In fact, I am going to give you an opportunity to start now! Instead of writing a couple more paragraphs about how taking this moment every day can benefit you and how you interact and work throughout your day, I am giving you that moment now. So…

Stop. Sit. Breathe.

P.S. Are you more of the scientific or fact-based kind? Check out this sweet post and infographic from LifeHack.