The Lunch Break Paradox
Hi there, how’s it going this week? I don’t know about you, but I’ve really been feeling the strain of the hustle these last few weeks. Work has continued to be super-busy with more than our typical number of sick and injured patients, unusual cases, zebras that should be horses. I’m still adjusting to the flow of curbside practice and, like most of you, we’re missing staff from all levels of our team.
It’s become even more difficult and, I would argue, even more necessary, to grab that lunch break. You know, the colour-coded time that’s blocked-off in your schedule in the middle of the day, that always gets a drop-off appointment put on top of it, or gets eaten-up by call-backs? I nearly always work through lunch so I can get out at the end of the day just sort-of late instead of really, really late.
But, I’m working on a theory. This is pretty out there and goes against what’s commonly modelled in veterinary medicine and, I suspect in most ‘helping’ industries, but stick with me here… What if, taking an actual break from work in the middle of the day makes me more efficient and therefore quicker? What if, by prioritizing a bit of time away from my desk, I’m able to improve my speed and clarity through the afternoon and actually get closer, instead of further away from leaving on time? Here’s what I’m thinking: if I can find a way to take my lunch break, like, actually take a break to eat, take care of non-work adulting tasks that I’m too tired to take care of after my shift, maybe even step outside for a few minutes, it’ll recharge me, give me some extra bandwidth to draw from in the afternoon and keep me from dragging my feet and being crabby with my co-workers. (Yeah, confession, I get crabby and demanding when I’m stressed—I don’t like that about myself, but it’s a thing I do. I’m trying to recognize it when I feel myself becoming impatient and use it as a sign that I need to find some slack somewhere, but that’s a conversation for another post).
For now, to test my theory about whether taking a lunch break will actually increase my efficiency and get me out the door sooner, I’m going to run a little experiment. I’m going to do my very best to take my lunch breaks for the next couple of weeks, and I’m going to plot that out against how late I stay at work. I’ll be sure to update you when it’s done. Maybe, if I figure out whether taking a lunch break helps my day go mores smoothly, I’ll start working on the ideal amount of time I need for my break (right now it’s scheduled for 30 minutes). I’m going to see this as a fun experiment, though I do have hopeful expectations about the outcome—I know, researcher bias! I will objectively plot my graph points though, and I’ll post it when I’m done.
Exception: If there is a true emergency and I’m the most available to provide care, I will, most certainly prioritize that above my break. You know what though, for me, as a GP, it rarely happens that we have an emergency to deal with at lunch time. And, maybe because it’s so rare, and because it’s what I’m trained to do, and because, my ultimate mission is to help my patients and clients, providing my best effort to a patient in immediate need, regardless of the outcome, makes me feel good and actually serves to recharge me. I’ll gladly give up my lunch break to triage and treat a patient who can not wait 30 minutes. But, I think I’m often guilty of inflating the urgency of the work I need to do (paperwork!) so I can justify putting it ahead of taking a break.
Is there a lunch break paradox? Does stopping work in the middle of the day allow one to leave on time? Wouldn’t it be amazing if this were the case? Stay tuned for my answer, and, run your own experiment if you want.