Schedule it—Plan a regular walk or visit to a coffee joint or weekly gossip session with colleagues you like. A fringe benefit of social breaks is that you’re more likely to take one if someone else is counting on you. Or go Swedish and try what Swedes call a fika—a full-fledged coffee break that is the supposed key to Sweden’s high levels of employee satisfaction and productivity.5 Don’t schedule it—If your schedule is too tight for something regular, buy someone a coffee one day this week. Bring it to her. Sit and talk about something other than work for five minutes.
