People used to boast about their ability to multitask – “Look how much I can get done at once.” Now, in the 21st century, people are boasting about their ability to be mindful, and for good reason.
You know multitasking: writing a report while listening to a podcast, and sipping on your favourite chai latte, while on a treadmill; or cooking dinner while helping your kids with their homework and answering emails on your phone. What if I told you that multitasking is impossible. You are not listening to music and studying at the same time. Our brains are unable to do multiple tasks simultaneously. So what we call “multitasking” is actually “task switching”, which is when your brain quickly switches from one task to another.
Here is an exercise that illustrates this point (from Nancy Napier, Psychology Today)
Not Multitasking:
1. Draw two horizontal lines on a piece of paper
2. Time yourself as you complete the following:
• On the first line, write: I am a great multitasker
• On the second line: write out the numbers 1-20, like this:
o o 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
How long did it take? Probably about 20 seconds.
Now, Let’s Multitask:
1. Draw two horizontal lines on a piece of paper
2. Time yourself as you write the same 2 lines are before (“I am a great multitasker” and numbers 1-20) but this time with a twist.
Write one letter on first line, and then a number on the second line, then the next letter on the first line, and then the next number on the second line, changing from line to line. So you’d write the letter “I” and then the number “1” and then the letter “a” and then the number “2” and so on, until you complete both lines.
How long did it take you to do the same task while multitasking or “task switching”? It may have taken you twice as long or more. You probably had to concentrate much more, felt frustrated, and may even have made some mistakes along the way.
When you are trying to multitask, juggling more than one task at a time, your brain is rapidly switching from one task to another. This leads to less attention paid to any of the tasks being juggled, which can lead to error and it will take longer overall to complete your tasks. In addition, you will feel more pressure (read: stress) and brain drain (read: fatigue) because you’re asking your brain to do a lot more work. The American Psychological Association cites multitasking can reduce your productive time by 40%!
We’ve added an additional level of multitasking with the age of smart phones constantly buzzing in our pockets, with email alerts, tweets, Facebook notifications, app reminders, etc. You may be already trying to mentally juggle two tasks and your phone buzzing adds a third. Studies have shown than even a tiny 3 second interruption can double errors – how long does it take you to take a quick look at your phone when it buzzes?
Once You Decide To Stop Multitasking, You Are Choosing To Be Mindful
Mindfulness means paying attention to what you are doing, being in the moment. Instead of mentally juggling multiple tasks, try actually completing them fully in succession. Finish your report, then check and answer email, then listen to your co-worker’s funny story. You may find yourself getting in the flow easier, the report writing comes easily, the over-full inbox is not so frustrating, and your co-worker’s story is actually funny. You may find yourself feeling enjoyment, a sense of calm, a sense of accomplishment without a feeling of exhaustion.
Try it out. I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised.
