An interesting article in the Guardian by neuroscientist Daniel J. Levitin outlines the downsides of attempted multi-tasking.
We text while we’re walking across the street, catch up on email while standing in a queue – and while having lunch with friends, we surreptitiously check to see what our other friends are doing. At the kitchen counter, cosy and secure in our domicile, we write our shopping lists on smartphones while we are listening to that wonderfully informative podcast on urban beekeeping.
We frequently think we’re being efficient when we try to do several things at once, but in reality, our brains are just switching between tasks incredibly quickly.
This negatively impacts our performance, meaning that all we’re really doing is several things, badly. We’re not completely to blame, though! Our work environment – and the tools we use – also play a role here. They encourage us to multi-task.
Everything from on-screen email notifications, instant messenger ‘pings’, open-plan offices and poorly-structured meetings can lead our attention to stray from one task to another.
This attempted multi-tasking is also bad for our health:
Multitasking has been found to increase the production of the stress hormone cortisol as well as the fight-or-flight hormone adrenaline, which can overstimulate your brain and cause mental fog or scrambled thinking.
Next time you find yourself moving on to something else, ask yourself if you actually consciously decided to do so – or whether you were lead astray by a dialogue box on your laptop screen, or simply the interruptions coming from your colleagues around you.
Minimising these interruptions isn’t easy, but you can make a simple start by shutting off automated notifications on all your devices (computer, tablet, mobile phone… the list is getting longer!) and practice focusing on a single task at a time. You can also seek out a quiet place at work to dedicate to some pure, uninterrupted work.
If you’ve been a serial multi-tasker, sustained focus on one task might seem difficult. But practice is worthwhile, as you can produce a better output if you’ve given it your full attention.
Remember: those emails can wait.
Go focus on something important.