Gaming at work makes you smarter, faster, stronger....well, more efficient anyways.

The folks over at Trendhunter.com
picked up on a report from Popcap games that states that taking breaks
at work actually makes you more efficient. This is no surprise to us at
Two Bit News, we take several hours a day to break for gaming sessions,
all in the name of science, right? In fact, we're probably the most
efficient workers on the planet. Think of it this way, in an average
day, I do 10 or 11 hours of gaming, and 30 minutes of work. That means
I must be lightning fast with cat like speed and snake like reflexes,
I'm like a Sn-at (freaky snake + cat gene pairing).

Then again I'm fast too, so I'm like a Snat on a bicycle, going down
hill (because it's stubby legs probably can't reach the pedals). I feel
bad for all those other workers out there spending upwards of 3 hours a
day at their day jobs, when meanwhile over here I'm a veritable Neo in
the Matrix of work time, all your words go super slow and I dodge them
with my superhuman efficiency. In fact, I'm working too much right now,
I'm going to wear myself out, better send you somewhere else....

Here is what Trendhunter had to say:

"Cyberslacking,
a term Trend Hunter was introduced to a few months ago, has become a
worldwide business issue that’s lead to “e-break” bans in corporations
around the world. This act of limiting employee access to the internet
has led to a £4 billion (US$7.92 billion) annual loss for UK
businesses.

PopCap Games
published a report this week that said the financial loss is,
ironically, due to a drop in productivity of the workers. The PopCap
Break Report 2008 revealed giving employees 10 minutes of personal
online free time during the work day resulted in better work; it
decreases employee stress, allowing them to resume work refreshed and
with a sharpened
mind.

“The research shows that far from distracting employees from their
work, e-breaks actually serve to increase staff efficiency and morale,
benefitting UK businesses,” PopCap says.

70% of major UK companies prohibited their employees from
cyberslacking on their MySpace and Facebook pages. Some companies where
employees don’t require use of the web banned internet access
altogether.

“With work days becoming increasingly longer and work loads more
demanding, UK bosses are introducing internet bans to help combat
alleged productivity loss and inappropriate use of workplace
resources,” says Dr Chamorro-Premuzic. “Yet bosses are missing a trick
by introducing e-bans.

“The PopCap Break Report has revealed that allowing workers more
freedom at the PC, can benefit the worker’s morale levels, effectively
boosting companies’ profits. In addition to allowing their mind to
switch off from their work worries, employers can foster a more
trusting and enjoyable environment for workers.”

The report finds, which involved university-based psychology
studies, revealed that on 10 minute e-break in the work day
significantly boosts productivity.

The top five suggested e-breaks, as suggested by Dr Chamorro-Premuzic:

1. Puzzles and casual computer games

2. Social networking & personal emails

3. Online shopping

4. General browsing

5. Life admin

So, to anyone who is not self-employed, I recommend forwarding this to
your boss. If you want to anonymously lobby your boss to take these
e-breaks, check out http://www.popcapbreak.com."

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