During the pandemic, with an increase of remote working many of us found our days filled with back-to-back virtual meetings and from what I have witnessed, many of us still have days full of back-to-back virtual meetings.

According to a recent study by Microsoft, back-to-back virtual meetings can be stressful and lead to fatigue. However, the study also found that taking short breaks can help alleviate this stress. Researchers from Microsoft's Human Factors Lab asked 14 people to participate in video meetings while wearing a cap to monitor the electrical activity in their brains. They participated in two different sessions of meetings. On one day, they attended four half-hour back-to-back meetings; on another, the four half-hour meetings were separated by 10-minute breaks.

The study showed that taking breaks between meetings can help the brain "reset" and reduce the cumulative buildup of stress across meetings. In two straight hours of back-to-back meetings, the average activity of beta waves - those associated with stress - increased over time. In other words, the stress kept accumulating.

In conclusion, taking short breaks between virtual meetings can help reduce stress and improve focus and engagement during meetings. I know that I personally find it difficult to ensure I have sufficient breaks between meetings. This article from Microsoft reviews the research and provides instruction on how to setup Outlook to build breaks into your meeting schedules.