I did say no resolutions (for myself). If you are successful at them, then I urge you to keep them. Me, and quite a few other people, probably not so much.
I read an article a few weeks ago regarding multi-tasking (here), This Year, Resolve To Do Less Multi-Tasking via CNNMoney (“Plenty of people believe that doing several things at once makes them more productive. In fact, the opposite is true”). Granted, none of us are Boeing (at least not that I know of), but 64% is a huge number when it is statistical data that reflects increased productivity after a focus on less multi-tasking.
“Many people boast about their multitasking prowess on their resumes and in job interviews,” he adds. “But in reality, this is like saying, ‘I don’t get things done as quickly, or as well, as others do.'”
So, what really is multi-tasking? And why does it seem women are especially good at it?
Business Insider says (here): “Multi-tasking makes us dumber, less productive, and neither gender is better at it”
I agree more with comments in the article in TheWeek (here). “While ancient men were responsible primarily for hunting and gathering, women had to tend to the children, the house and all the other activities of daily living,” he said. “Over the years, women may have retained this ability, translating into an improved ability to multitask.”
Ladies, don’t get excited, the article goes on to drop the bomb (quote): So if I’m a woman, multitasking makes me more efficient? “Actually, probably not. There is evidence that multitasking is a drag on productivity for pretty much everyone, regardless of gender. The reason for that relates to basic structure of brain: The right and left hemispheres cooperate when working on a single task, says multitasking researcher Dr. Etienne Koechlin of France’s National Institute of Health and Medical Research. “But in two tasks, one hemisphere covers the reward of one task and the other hemisphere covers the reward of the other.” That, unfortunately, applies to both genders.
So, if we are stressed, trying to juggle several tasks at once, are we becoming less efficient even though we feel we are knocking out the list fast and furious? Probably less efficient. What are we missing?
The ugly reality: Did I really miss paying that bill, and why? Oh, I was on Facebook, flipping back and forth between Pay The Bills on my bank account and Facebook. Sound the alarm – late fees. Did I really forget to turn the spigot off when refilling the smaller container of olive oil? Yes, I was checking on a recipe, and looking at packaging, and checking my phone, while the bottle was filling. Sound the alarm – one hour of clean up in the studio. Did I really miss that step when I fell to the ground? Sound the alarm – it hurt when I realized I was on the ground and was not thinking about safety first.
What do you think? Are we good at multi-tasking? Can we really multi-task and be efficient? Is there a sliding scale? “I can multi-task at this (fill in the blank), but not while doing that (fill in the blank).”
For now, for me, no resolutions, just mini virtual vacations to Tahiti (if only for a moment), rather than allowing the multi-task focused mind to jump by leaps and bounds. Focusing on one task cannot be all that boring!
Results forthcoming.
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Ugh – multi-tasking!! I have never been good at it. I am a one-thing-at-a-time kind of woman, and I get stressed out and irritable when asked to do more. I yell at everyone in the kitchen at dinner time when they are asking me inane questions while I’m trying to make the salad! I try to organize my day by a list of sorts: do this thing first, then do the next thing. I often let the phone ring when I’m engaged in something – I’ll listen to the answer machine later. I know there are many more people out there who are much better at multi-tasking than I am, and who think nothing of it. But I have always gone all irritable and bitchy when I have too much on my plate! “One thing at a time” and “tomorrow is another day” are my two favorite mottos!
I am good at multi-tasking, so I think. But I am also good at stressing and not realizing it. I think people like you, those that know to not multi-task, have it in the bag already! You don’t do it to begin with, so you don’t deal with the mistakes and stress that are more frequent when we try to do too much at once. I love “One thing at a time” and “tomorrow is another day.” Good mottos!
I’m with you! While I CAN multi-task in some situations, are all those getting the time and attention they need? Probably not. It’s just best to concentrate on one task at a time and in the end, you will discover you can get much more done in the same amount of time and likely do them better. At one time, I volunteered 2-3 days a week in one of the ministry pastor’s offices at my former church. The secretary that I worked with would comment often on how I could get so much done in my time there. I took one “to do”, done it from start to finish then moved to the next task. She, on the other hand, would have several projects going at a time and wouldn’t get any them done in the time frame she wanted.
Somehow I knew you would come up with a good response on this post, Ginger. You are so good at breaking it all down, one step at a time. When we concentrate on one thing at a time, we do bring a lot more value to whatever we are doing at the moment.
We don’t usually do resolutions here either! I’m not much of a multi-tasker either though.
Have a good weekend and stay warm!
Amy
Multi-tasking is only productive if you actually accomplish what you set out to. If things are left unfinished then you are not an efficient multi-tasker. In a job I once held you didn’t have a choice but to multi-task, otherwise you didn’t have time to complete some things and/or you had people yelling at you because they were waiting for somehting they needed you to complete. Now I try to stay on task till something is complete. And that is not easy for me because I have been trained to multi-task. About the only thing I multi-task is when I am cooking a meal. I don’t think anyone has a choice there. tee hee