How long should you work before taking a break? The typical recommendations I see in the blogosphere are (a) every 50-60 minutes and (b) every 90 minutes. My advice: take breaks when you actually need them rather than taking them on schedule.

Be careful with advice given by writers. It may not be wrong, but it may very well be domain-specific. In other words, a clerk in a copy store can probably work two or three times as long as a writer without needing a break. A construction worker may only be able to optimally work half as long. Think about the nature of the work you do and learn to rightsize your breaks accordingly.

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How do you plan and track your daily activities, with a calendar or a to do list? Some productivity gurus claim that putting everything on your calendar ensures that it never gets done, or that you’ll cross off what you don’t get done and just reschedule it for the next day — which defeats the purpose of scheduling. Other gurus claim that putting everything on a list, where items aren’t tied to a time and date, ensures that they never get done, since they lack specific queues to get started or deadlines to finish.

If the choice is mutually exclusive, I think they’re both wrong. Calendars and lists are related, but serve different purposes, not unlike clocks and timers. You can use a clock as a timer, but it’s not the best tool for the job.

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Working in different places can prove to be quite beneficial. A change of scenery could be exactly what you need if you’re stuck in a creative rut or experiencing writers block – or just simply bored.

By changing your location, atmosphere, tools, and even clothing, you can change the way you work.

I’ve done quite a bit of experimenting with this, and find it to be quite effective. Here are some examples of some different work environments and the types of work you can achieve in each setting: Keep Reading…