The Myth of the Multi-Tasker
There seems to be a belief, particularly in corporate settings, that multitasking is a super-power and should be celebrated, but the dark side of that belief is the truth that each of us can only place our attention completely on one thing at a time.
That’s where mindful efficiency comes in.
Mindful efficiency is the antidote for attentional blink and attention blindness.
(How did you do at paying attention more than one thing?)
Oh, I hear you Type-A’s out there screaming right now. “We’re efficient! We multi-task! We get so much done…more than you do! Just because you can’t focus on more than one thing a time, don’t tell me what to do!”
Well, calm down there, Sparky.
Let’s break this down before you have a breakdown.
1. I’ll never tell you what to do, that’s your choice. I will help you bring to awareness things that you think are serving you, but really aren’t.
2. You may, or may not, get more done than me…some days. There are days that I will accomplish more than you. It’s called the flow of life.
3. As you are multi-tasking, how much fun are you having? Working on Item 1, are you concerned about Item 5, then before completing Item 1, are you jumping to Item 3? (That’s a lot of open loops to keep track of…how’s that feel?)
(And to be clear here, in this discussion, I am not talking about open loops where there are distinct steps that have to be taken in a particular order and time, with pauses between the phases. That’s called project management. Not the same thing I am discussing here.)
4. When you think about Item 5 while working on Items 1 and 3, how much of your attention is on the thing you are doing actively, rather than on the thing you think you need to do next (or think you should be doing)?
5. It’s not that I can’t multi-task. I make the active choice to choose not to. You’ll learn why below.
There are very real implications to both personal and workplace health caused by multi-tasking.
I used to be like you. I thought multi-tasking was great. The more I could juggle, the more valuable I was.
I worked hard to learn how to keep 10 or more things going at once.
And then one day, I suddenly realized that I was forgetting details. I was missing important information. I was not as good as I thought I was.
Not only was I stressing out over all the balls I had in the air, trying to make sure I didn’t drop one, now I was noticing that I wasn’t quite getting enough clean air-time with some of them…the hand-offs and transitions were getting closer to fumbles than clean catches & passes.
I was moving so fast that I wasn’t handing off information clearly. My customer service meetings turned into, “Here you go. Have fun with it. Oh, here’s a couple of details that are important. Call me if you have questions. I gotta get to a meeting.”
Unfocused and ultimately unproductive.
I was working at being busy, not working at being effective.
Had I taken 5 – 10 minutes to write up notes on those project details, or given my full attention to my CSR’s questions, we would have saved thousands in downtime and equipment pauses while we idled work processes waiting on critical answers.
Does this sound familiar to you?
I hope not, but I have a feeling that this is all too common of an experience in the workplace.
If it does sound familiar, what are you feeling right now? Stress? Anger? Fear? Frustration? Ennui?
Is that serving you? Is it keeping you from being focused on the task at hand, or on important relationships?
COVID-19
Six months into the stresses created by the economic impact of COVID-19, how are you coping?
Are you trying to do too much, thinking that the next activity will deliver you a new job, or maybe help secure the one that you are holding onto?
Are you allowing distractions to keep you from being fully present both at home with loved ones and at work (which is probably being done at home right now too)?
When we’re in a stressful place, particularly an unknown place where we receive mixed messages every day (sound like a normal workday yet?), it’s important to step back from the chaos and narrow our focus on to the things which we can control.
Steps to realign and focus.
First off, breathe.
Slow, deep breaths. At least 5…keep going until you feel yourself calming down.
Now, ask yourself:
1. What’s the ultimate goal: to be running on to the next thing, or to be efficient, productive and profitable?
2. How can I be most effective: By running around or by slowing down and focusing?
3. How do I want to feel at the end of the day: Frustrated and angry, or calm knowing I did everything in my control to do the best I could?
Your choice in answering. Choose wisely.
I will tell you this: Your boss may scream, your clients may threaten, your co-workers may complain about what you ask from them, but if you change your approach and come at your work from a place of highest intentions and good will, very few people will fault you. In fact, most will appreciate your authenticity.
You can’t pour from an empty cup. Nor can you make a clean pour if you aren’t paying attention.
While multi-tasking may not be the super power you thought it was, you do have another; one that you may be completely unaware of since you haven’t taken time to focus on discovering it.
This is your unique super power that will set you apart from everyone else.
Are you ready to discover it?
I discovered mine: It’s to help you discover yours.
Contact me today to begin your heroic journey.
