I needed a break and thought:

• they say go outside,
• they say exercise more, and
• they even say just looking at nature is good.

“Just do it”, I told myself.

It was an effort to get going. The fridge is closer. Still, I put on my Nike’s and out I went.

I was doing well on the first two as I walked the neighbourhood – outside and exercise.

Then I found it.

You wouldn’t expect to find a Reserve half-way down a squashy, inner-Melbourne street. But there it was. Small, with a tree I found particularly beautiful and a park bench. Nature.

Turns out, according to attention restoration theory, you don’t need a big break to get your focus back and reduce stress. Small can be beautiful.

• A 5-minute walk every hour (even around the office if you can’t get outside).
• 40-seconds just looking at nature (think screen saver if not the real thing).
• A friendly micro-exchange with a colleague about anything positive (to boost your mood).

Just like the Reserve that does the nature trick when there’s barely room for it, there’s evidence that short breaks work too.

Short break. Small Reserve. Big results.

Carpe diem!