![]() ![]() Recent research also found that firefighters who ate lunch together reported that it was a “central component of keeping their teams operating effectively.” I’d be willing to bet that more organizations could benefit from greater team effectiveness, and normalizing lunch is a great place to start, whether it’s to reduce stress and burnout, encourage team-building, or foster an organizational culture that doesn’t equate overwork with productivity. One survey found that North American employees who take a lunch break every day reported higher engagement based on metrics including job satisfaction, productivity, and likelihood to recommend working there to others. Managers must ensure that their teams don’t get penalized or viewed as less productive and foster an environment where taking time for lunch is a norm within the organization.Įveryone benefits when workplace lunches are normalized. The onus lies on leaders to create the psychological safety for employees to take time for lunch. While dining out might not be an option for most workers in other countries for the foreseeable future, the commitment to taking a break, mindfully eating lunch, and ideally even connecting with a team member or the whole team (virtually) is one I advocate wholeheartedly. I’ve heard of teams that work remotely but still make a point to meet for lunch in small groups. ![]() There are enforced pandemic norms, including a limit on the size of groups, but making time to connect and gather for meals (safely) remains important to the average Singaporean worker. I’ve frequently seen people from all different backgrounds, cultures, job functions, and levels convene during lunch, even in pandemic times. ![]() And indeed, we have the privilege of having convenient, quick, relatively healthy, and cost-effective options (for example, hawker centers) in close proximity to most businesses, which creates ideal conditions for team lunches. That’s a shame, because as a Singaporean, lunch time has always been sacred for me. While I’ve long been dedicated to my lunchtime commitment - whether it’s eating away from my desk, catching up with a friend, or going for a walk - I found myself succumbing to the “eat mindlessly in front of your computer” habit (and skipping meals and walks altogether) for much of 2020. Research shows that, thanks to remote work, we’re spending an average of 48.5 minutes more at work each day, attending more meetings, and navigating more emails. In fact, 62% of American workers say they eat lunch at their desks. The nation’s workers also eschew lunch to work longer. has the distinct (dis)honor of being the only country in the OECD that doesn’t guarantee a single day of federally mandated paid time off. And that’s if they were lucky enough to have vacation days at all - the U.S. North American workers are famously overworked in 2018, they took an average of 17.4 vacation days, leaving 768 million vacation days on the table. As we try to make sense of the painful year that just passed and plan for 2021 and the new normal at work, I’d like to add: let’s normalize a proper, generous lunch break - both in the remote work environment and especially when we return to any sort of regular, in-person office environment. ![]() Remote working has made it nearly impossible to keep a commitment I try to stick to: to step away from work to eat lunch or go for a walk in the middle of the day. I’m committing to doubling down on this in 2021. This means not at my desk, not in a meeting or while working, but connecting with someone, or even myself, while I eat mindfully.” “I’d consider my life well-lived if I took time to eat lunch during the workday almost every day. While 2019 looked considerably different than 2020, upon reflection, my answer remains the same: In 2019, I was invited to share what I would consider a life well-lived. ![]()
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