STOP MULTITASKING. Be More Present and Productive!

Do you Multitask? If you are a woman, you probably do, thinking it will help you have those momentary highs when you cross an item off your ‘to do’ list. 

If you truly can multitask, then you are superhuman and I take my hat off to you. The rest of us are only able to focus on one thing fully at a time. What we think is multitasking is actually rapidly shifting our focus from task to task. When we do this “switchtasking,” we lose up to 30% efficiency. We increase our rate of mistakes. It stresses our brains. And we remember hardly anything we read or hear.

We want to be present at work and home—and we want to have time for reflection. Women are said to be better at multitasking, but just because you can, doesn’t mean you should!

What’s less stressful and more productive than multitasking? 

Serial Monofocus. Put your full attention on one matter until it is completed or you have completed your daily milestones. Then move to the next item and put all your attention on that until it’s completed. A study showed that CEOs do ‘serial monofocus.' They focus deeply on a task (e.g., until they make a decision), then move to the next. When it comes to interacting with people, this is known as the “Bill Clinton” effect (making each person feel they are the most important person while speaking with them). You can do this too, and people will remember you positively.

Bundle your tasks. Did you know that you use a different part of your brain to write your ‘to do’ list than you do to carry out the items on your ‘to do’ list? It’s much more efficient if you spend time prioritizing and creating your to do list, and then calendar the time to actually do the deep thinking or writing related to carrying out the work. If you separate these two kinds of work tasks you will be more efficient.

Intentional Focus. Try to be more intentional about what kind of attention is needed and make decisions based on it. Listening to a podcast or the news on your commute may get an appropriate level of your attention. If you are on a conference call devoting only half your attention, do you really need to be on it at all? If you are not a decision maker and just need to pick up a few pieces of information, could you ask for the notes and skim them for relevant sections…? If you are helping your child with their math homework, how do you want them to feel about your attention? 

-Sharon Melnick, PhD, September 2015 Career Coach