Last week on the blog, we talked about how important community is within the workspace. The latest in the series discusses how important it is to have somewhere to break away whilst at work.
Let’s face it, we’re complicated beings and it isn’t long before we become bored of our surroundings, stimuli runs low and in turn, productivity dips. Likewise, we often need to meet with a select number of the team; we need an informal spot to chat with clients or we just need somewhere to unwind for an hour. This is where breakout spaces are irreplaceable.
According to an article by Contour, ‘Breakout space in offices [is] increasingly essential to elevate staff morale, increase mental well-being and nurture productivity levels.’
Key to Workspace Wellbeing
As well as being good for business, taking breaks from the desk is also good for wellbeing and mental health. Having an attractive and welcoming space to gather your thoughts can help to relieve feelings of stress and the sense of being overwhelmed. Because nobody is fully effective when they’re feeling burnt out.
Many of our workspace providers including Fora Space, Office Space in Town and The Office Group also incorporate green walls, plants and plentiful natural materials to allow people to feel closer to nature while they unwind. This is a technique which makes people feel much more calm and relaxed.
A Space to Unwind
Usually built with comfort and relaxation in mind, alongside productivity of course, breakout spaces can be great spots to simply relax with a coffee and enjoy that self-improvement book you’ve been waiting to get stuck into.
There is nothing wrong with taking time out for yourself during your working day, it allows you to distract your mind from the thing that you’ve been unsuccessfully labouring over for the past three hours and reset your focus.
The Benefits of Community
What’s more, taking time out in social areas is a great opportunity to share a predicament with someone else, outside of your team, who could shine some light on where to take your project next.
A Creative Haven
If designed well, the breakout space can be the perfect brain-storming setting. Creativity is known to come more easily in relaxed and informal settings. Moving away from your usual workspace can help the mind to wander and think outside the box. Doing this in teams is also great for morale as together, individuals can see progress and productivity in front of them.
Keeping Active
Another health benefit of incorporating breakout space into the workspace is that they help to promote movement while you work. As explained in an article by Absolute, ‘Providing a breakout area encourages employees to move around the office rather than sit in one place for hours on end. Some offices choose to incorporate features such as table tennis, which increases mobility and activity in their team as well as being the perfect spot to hold an informal meeting.’
Just a Quiet Spot
Finally, one of the simplest reasons that breakout space works so well is due to the fact that it offers people a quiet spot to focus and really get in the zone. Anyone who has worked within an open office environment will understand how noise distractions can sometimes become a problem for focused work.
If you’re looking to find somewhere with a little more variety – somewhere to break away from the desk – Officio can help. Just get in touch.