Fika: A Coffee Break For Productivity

Coronavirus has shone a spotlight on workplace productivity. Many of you are still working from home and juggling additional responsibilities of child care or schooling and household tasks.  Demands on you escalate to the point where you know you need a break, but don’t dare take one. A paradox is at work. In order to survive the crush in this unusual environment, you need some downtime more than ever. The Swedish tradition of fika might offer an answer. Fika is the Swedish practice of stopping work for a coffee break with friends and often a little something to eat. This is not the American coffee break of grabbing some caffeine to power through several more hours of work. Rather fika is a pause in the rush of the day, a few minutes to disengage from workday tasks and to savor some slowed down moments with people whose company you enjoy.  Fika is ingrained in Swedish culture. From factories to hospitals to schools, employees do fika. A friend in Sweden reports that the school where she teaches takes two thirty-minute fika breaks each day. At 10:00 and at 2:00, teachers and staff gather to chat, usually not about work. Even in a workplace, the point is rest from work and communication with co-workers.  Fika can be done in a grand way, with the traditional seven kinds of cookies and the host’s good china. Or it can be as simple as just taking a moment away from tasks. Imagine the rich aroma of fresh coffee or tea, the comfort of wrapping your hands ...
Source: PickTheBrain | Motivation and Self Improvement - Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Tags: featured happiness productivity tips self-improvement fika Source Type: blogs