The same holds true for smaller, daily breaks. Something as simple as stepping away from your desk for lunch can reset your focus, improve your mood, and boost creativity.

Breaks allow your brain to process information, consolidate learning, and generate new ideas. Rest is not the opposite of productivity. It’s what makes productivity possible.

One of the most effective ways to prevent burnout is to create and maintain clear boundaries between your work and personal life. This means using your lunch break without guilt, learning to say no when you’re at capacity, setting expectations around communication outside of work hours, and taking time off when needed. Without boundaries, work seeps into every corner of your day, eroding your ability to recharge.

For managers and leaders, modelling these behaviours is crucial. When leadership respects and encourages boundaries, it sends a powerful message to teams that wellbeing is a shared priority.

Culture shifts start at the top. Companies that prioritise employee wellbeing reap the benefits in the form of higher engagement, stronger retention, and better performance.

At the heart of this conversation is a simple but profound truth: your career is part of your life, not the entirety of it. Jobs will come and go. Titles will change. But your health, your relationships, your time – these are irreplaceable.

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The idea that success must come at a cost is a narrative worth challenging. A great career should support a great life, not compete with it. When we allow ourselves to unplug, we reconnect not just with ourselves, but with what truly matters.

So take your lunch break. Use your annual leave. Prioritise your health. Set boundaries. Log off after hours. The work will still be there tomorrow, and you’ll return to it better equipped to do it well. Because there’s more to life than work.

Téa Angelos is an entrepreneur, author, speaker and founder of Smart Women Society.