How to use the online timer
Ten minutes is a real break rather than a pause, and it is the length most often skipped by people who most need it. Working straight through from nine until one does not produce more output, it produces slower work from about eleven onwards, and the deterioration is hard to notice from the inside. A short, deliberate stop resets attention more effectively than pushing through and hoping.
What happens in the ten minutes decides whether it counts. Staying at the desk and switching from a document to a news site keeps the eyes on the same screen at the same distance and rests nothing. Standing up, walking to the kettle, going outside for two minutes of daylight, or looking at something more than a few metres away all do considerably more. Eyes in particular benefit from any distance at all after an hour of staring at a screen.
The risk with a break is the other direction, where ten minutes quietly becomes forty and the return is harder than it needed to be. Deciding the length in advance is what keeps it a break, and coming back at the agreed point tends to be easier than coming back from an open-ended wander, since nothing has to be decided at the time.
Common questions
Does a break at my desk count?
Not really. Switching from a document to a news site keeps the eyes at the same distance on the same screen. Standing up, walking about or looking out of a window does considerably more.
How do I stop ten minutes turning into forty?
Decide the length before you stand up. Coming back at an agreed point is easier than deciding when to return partway through an open-ended wander.
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