Employees across the globe are being asked to take part in ‘techtimeout tuesday’ on November 28th to boost productivity and mental health. Mental Health First Aid England has announced its partnership with the awareness day to encourage improvements in our digital habits.
The average adult spends over 11 hours per day interacting with digital media and 75% of employees believe their work performance is affected by multitasking and constant notifications.
The founder of ‘techtimeout tuesday,’ Stephanie Henson, launched the initiative in 2020 with a mission to promote having a healthier relationship with technology.
Stephanie is also director of UK technology company, Six Ticks, but believes limiting our time on tech is the key to improving productivity and mental health. “Employees are feeling the strain of always being ‘on’,” said Stephanie. “Even when we step away from our computers, we’re still inundated with notifications on our phones. It’s increasingly harder to switch off.
“’techtimeout tuesday’ works with businesses to inspire their employees to break the cycle of excessive screentime, to start creating healthier habits. We picked this particular Tuesday as it follows Black Friday and Cyber Monday when many of us are spending even more time online.
“We’re offering a simple way for business leaders to promote digital wellbeing. They just need to sign up on the website, share our resources with their teams, and encourage them to take some time away from tech on November 28th, whether that’s 10 minutes or all day!”
Simon Blake, Chief Executive at MHFA England, said, “So much of our time both at work and at home is spent on phones and computers, with notifications popping up here, there, and everywhere. Technology has so much power for good, but only if we also know how to step away from it and give our brain and body the chance to both enjoy the power of connection with people, nature, and rest.
“At MHFA England, we are proudly paving the way for positive mental health in the workplace, and as part of our approach to wellbeing we will be partnering with techtimeout to host this year’s digital wellbeing day ‘techtimeout tuesday’ on November 28th to encourage improvements in our digital habits, and we’ll be encouraging our network of Mental Health First Aiders to get involved too.”
