What is mental fatigue?

An intense workout can exhaust your body. The same can occur to your brain; heavy cognitive loads can result in mental fatigue. This doesn't just make you feel tired; mental fatigue can substantially reduce your performance.

Pylot's research shows that high levels of mental fatigue can result in a significant reduction in performance. Continuing to work when in this fatigued state will generally result in poorer work quality and escalating fatigue levels, which are difficult to overcome.

Mental fatigue and task performance

Measuring performance, particularly in the workplace, presents a challenge. To address this, we turned to competitive gamers for Pylot's performance-based research. The clear-cut outcomes of winning or losing a game, supplemented by various game statistics, provide a tangible performance measure.

Our research tracked the cognitive performance of eight competitive gamers, each of whom played over 100 games (~50 hours) during a period of several months. Over a large number of games like this, players win ~50% of games played. When a player started a game in a fatigued state, their win rate dropped by 12%

This may not sound like a lot to non-gamers, but that is a huge difference, both statistically and practically.

Interestingly, the relationship between fatigue and performance isn't linear. Win rates remained unchanged between low and moderate mental fatigue levels. However, when players experienced high fatigue levels, a significant reduction was observed

Recovering from a fatigued state

Considering the adverse effects of mental fatigue, it's important to strategise ways to manage or avoid such situations.

Success at work relies on consistent performance - producing quality work in the morning and afternoon, day after day. Pushing through mental fatigue can delay recovery times, potentially reducing your performance for the rest of the day or even into the next.

Hence, the recommendation is to take short, regular recovery breaks. Based on our research and practical implementation, we advise engaging in focused deep work sessions of 90-120 minutes, followed by a 15-20 minute break. However, everyone is unique, so use this as your starting point, and Pylot can help you discover what approach best suits you.

The activities you engage in during these breaks also matter. Ideally, step away from your desk and avoid screens. Consider going for a brief walk, getting a drink or snack, or simply gazing out the window. These simple actions can hasten recovery.

In conclusion, aim to avoid prolonged periods of time working in a fatigued state. Not only will your performance drop, but your ability to perform in the next session may also be impaired.