It’s Time to Stop Multitasking

Since we own small businesses, are freelancers, or provide services, we think that we need to multitask (do multiple activities at the same time) to be productive and get things done. It might make sense if we are doing 2 or more activities that don’t require much thinking. But once you start multitasking while doing activities where you need to concentrate, listen, understand, take notes, calculate, or think, you will see a drop in your productivity.

This drop in productivity happens every time you switch tasks and need to pause and refocus on the activity at hand. This is what is called the cost of task switching. When you multitask, you end up taking longer to do something than if you just focused on completing one task at a time. And what’s worse, Stanford researchers have found that people who multitask become less efficient over time. That totally defeats the purpose and effort of multitasking!

When people multitask with their work, I have found that they are not really paying attention to what they are doing, they make mistakes, fail to complete portions of the assignment, and they can’t give me an accurate time estimate for when the work will be completed. For myself, I find that it interrupts my workflow, I lose focus, and I become more distracted when I multitask.

 

There are better ways to be productive. And you can follow them or keep them in mind when you are assigning tasks to your employees or collaborators. These include:

 

1. Make a list of your top priorities for the week or day. Work off this list to tackle any urgent tasks, one at a time.

 

2. Assign yourself one important goal for each day and work on at least one task from that goal (after you finish anything urgent). This way you are spending more time working toward your goals instead of busy work.

 

3. Use time blocking to schedule your day. Time blocking is when you group similar tasks together (like making phone calls or replying to e-mails) and schedule them into your day. Make sure you allow for focus time and breaks. Try to be realistic about how long a task will take you to complete.

 

4. Batch your tasks. Group tasks that are similar together (phone calls, e-mails, writing website content) and plan to work on them at a specific time or on a particular day. I try to knock out all my phone calls in the morning. I like to do more intense work at the beginning of the week and administrative work by the end of the week when my focus is not as concentrated.

 

5. Minimize distractions. Turn off notifications and keep only the ones that are necessary. Reduce the frequency your e-mail program checks for new e-mails during the day. Set times for checking e-mails and only check during those times. Consider apps to help you focus. Use the “routines” mode on your phone to block certain apps during the hours you need to concentrate. If your phone is a distraction, you can put it in airplane mode when you really need to focus.  

 

What are some of your favorite ways to stay productive while avoiding multitasking?

 

 

Sources:

Hurt, Avery. “Why Multitasking Does More Harm than Good.” Discover Magazine, 10 May 2021, https://www.discovermagazine.com/mind/why-multitasking-does-more-harm-than-good.

Martins, Julia. “Are You Time Blocking Your Calendar? Here’s Why You Should Start Now.” Asana, 13 Oct. 2022, https://asana.com/resources/what-is-time-blocking.