It is very possible that you are listening to music as you read this article. At least for me, instrumental jazz is playing in the background. That’s not a problem, of course, as long as I don’t start listening to the saxophone solo or the double bass scales. At best, music can even help us concentrate, but we are always in the danger zone when we are doing two or more things at the same time, or perhaps more accurately, overlapping.
In today’s society, and especially in the workplace, efficiency, speed and performance have become all too central values. If you can’t keep up with the ever-accelerating pace of the machine and at least look busy, you’re hopelessly behind the times.
With busyness comes the need to multitask and react to every stimulus with near panic. It’s no wonder that multitasking (or at least trying to do several things at once) is on the rise. But is there a benefit, or is there a detriment?
What is multitasking?
The word “multitasking” has become commonplace, and we use it naturally when we talk about doing several things at once. In some cases, this is actually possible to some extent, if one of the things does not require any conscious attention at all. For example, you probably do a reasonably good job of walking forward while listening to a podcast and sipping your morning coffee on your commute. In this case, we can use the term simple multitasking, where we can actually find more time in our calendars by combining routine tasks with, say, studying.
By contrast, doing two more cognitively demanding tasks at the same time does not work so well. Nowadays, it’s common to sit on the couch and watch streaming services, but there’s still not enough content to feed our dopamine-hungry brains, so the smartphone automatically comes to hand. At worst, our attention is split between streaming, social media, chatting with friends, and browsing online content.
We think we can do all of these things efficiently at the same time, but in reality our brains are consuming huge amounts of energy by constantly switching from one object of attention to another, with no real space to concentrate. In the end, we don’t really get to grips with any one thing and end up feeling mostly irritated and confused when we stop. In this case, we’re talking about complex multitasking, which only undermines our performance.
In the context of learning, for example, watching a soccer game and studying at the same time is multitasking, even if you think you are a master at shifting your attention from one object to another as the situation demands. In reality, however, you are dividing your scarce working memory and attention between two separate things, and your poor brain is further taxed by having to decide which is more important at any given time.
Research agrees that multitasking impairs performance on all tasks performed at the same time. The more complex the task, the more likely it is that it will take significantly more time, often twice as long, to complete than if it had been done individually. At the same time, the number of errors increases dramatically. For example, traffic accidents are increasingly linked to the use of smart devices in traffic.
Simply put, the more tasks we do simultaneously, the less efficient we are and the more mistakes we make.
Why are we multitasking?
Why do we multitask so easily when we surely understand, at least on some level, that our ability to focus suffers mainly from excessive stimuli and distractions? The most common reasons are:
- Softening a difficult and challenging topic with an easier one
- Addiction to stimuli - especially via smartphone
- FOMO (fear of missing out)
- Overestimation of one’s own concentration
- Identity of a busy and efficient person
You might have heard of procrastination - putting off something difficult that requires concentration because it feels overwhelming to get started. This is also a common reason for multitasking. A difficult experience is even experienced in the brain in much the same way as a sensation of pain, with our brains unconsciously trying to alleviate the experience in some way. Perhaps listening to music or a podcast would put us in a better frame of mind and help us focus.
Another important reason is that far too many people have their smartphones glued to their hands, or at least within arm’s reach, virtually 24/7, making it easy to become addicted to them and the constant stream of stimulation they provide. We get constant doses of dopamine from responding to notifications and scrolling through more and more pointless short videos. No wonder smartphones have become a major distraction. Raise your hand if you have ever read a Whatsapp message while driving.
FOMO is centrally related to the former and is also one of the main causes of multitasking. The amount of content and information that seems to interest us is now virtually limitless and ridiculously easy to access. Information is no longer a hard currency, but the attention of its consumers. We are afraid that we will miss something important if we are not always available and sifting through the information fed to us. So we try to win an impossible battle by trying to do many things at once.
We may also multitask simply because we tend to overestimate our own ability to focus. A bad habit can easily become the new normal, and we may not even remember what it feels like to be fully focused, and perhaps even to enter a highly focused flow state. The same phenomenon applies to not getting enough sleep at night. Many people claim to be able to survive on little sleep, but chronic sleep deprivation has just gotten them used to walking like zombies, and they don’t even remember feeling truly refreshed.
Finally, multitasking is also encouraged by the identity of the so-called busy person. Particularly in the workplace, it is tempting to brand oneself as a perpetually overworked work hero, constantly walking the line between accomplishment and burnout. We don’t necessarily enjoy such an identity, but it feels like the right thing to do in a hectic and competitive work environment.
How to get rid of harmful multitasking
At this point, it is probably clear that multitasking is a habit worth getting rid of. Special attention should be paid to complex multitasking, where attention is focused on two things at once.
The first things to consider are the following, which make multitasking possible in the first place:
- The physical environment
- Digital Environment
- Cognitive environment.
The physical environment refers to all the things around us that can distract us or take our attention away from what we want to do. The home is the most challenging environment for almost everyone, although the benefits of remote work or distance learning are undeniable in many ways. However, it is at home that we are surrounded by all the stimuli that we deal with in our daily lives. As a result, it is easy for work and home to get mixed up, and we may even unconsciously start tidying up when we should be concentrating on a meeting or a lecture.
For projects that almost always require a high level of concentration, such as preparing for entrance exams, it makes sense to choose a different space. Why not go to a library, for example, where the environment is conducive to intense concentration?
The digital environment is first and foremost about your smart devices, your applications, and the tabs in your browser. Today’s digital environments allow you to work efficiently, but they also require you to multitask and fragment your attention here and there.
If you work on a computer, the easiest way to resist the temptation is to put your other smart devices completely out of reach, preferably in another room. Open only the apps and tabs you really need to get work done.
For both mobile phones and PCs, there are now a number of blocker applications that prevent you from opening applications you don’t need. This can be a good solution if you can’t otherwise keep your multitasking under control.
The cognitive environment is the way you think and the way your brain responds to stimuli. When your brain has learned to respond to everything and is constantly thirsting for dopamine doses, focusing and staying focused is bound to be a chore.
For some, focusing on one thing at a time comes more naturally than for others, but everyone can still train their brain and thinking when it comes to concentration. Successful periods of concentration alone will get you ahead, and it’s not a bad idea to try meditation or mindfulness training. They require some conscious effort at first, but it is also possible to build up an unconscious routine.
Five ways to eliminate multitasking from your daily life
Now you know where to focus your attention when it comes to tackling multitasking and its root causes in your daily life. Here are five concrete ways you can apply them to everything you do.
Attitude - Always focus on one thing at a time
The first and perhaps most important way to avoid harmful multitasking is to develop the right attitude toward it. This relates to the cognitive environment just mentioned. At best, you can build an identity for yourself as a person who can consciously focus your attention on what you want.
It’s all too easy to think of yourself as a certain kind of person who doesn’t have much control over your life or your abilities. You are born with certain characteristics and they are permanent.
In reality, however, this is not the case. Developed by psychologist Albert Bandura , the concept of self efficacy describes the extent to which we feel that we can influence things and believe that we can cope with different situations based on our own abilities. Research on this topic has shown that people with high self-efficacy actually perform better in challenging and demanding situations.
Similarly, Carol Dweck’s mindset theory emphasizes that people who believe in the possibility of growth and development outperform people who believe that their traits are essentially permanent. For example, if someone thinks they’re bad at math and doesn’t believe in their potential to grow, they’re also likely to perform less well and not even want to put in the effort to get results.
So attitude makes a big difference. If you think you’re an inherited multitasker and can’t help it, you’re likely to act like one. On the other hand, if you can imagine yourself as a person who can actually influence your choices, you will also improve your ability to control your own focus. This takes practice, but it can be done.
Setup - remove all the unnecessary stuff around you
The next action relates to the physical and digital environment. When you live in chaos, your cognitive world is easily thrown into chaos. You will inevitably feel dominated by the constant stimuli in your environment, rather than by them.
Most of our reactions to external things are more or less unconscious. You may often find yourself scrolling through your social media feed without consciously remembering when you picked up your phone and opened social media. In today’s attention economy, products are deliberately designed to be addictive and appeal to our fast-moving subconscious.
The easiest way to overcome this subconscious compulsion is to make your focus environment as clinical and minimalist as possible. Keep only those things, applications, tabs, books, tools, etc., within reach that you really need to do your work.
Planning - plan in advance what you will do and for how long
Even planning requires a conscious effort and can feel like an extra step for many things. However, this is not the case, and the time spent planning is usually repaid many times over in terms of output.
In other lessons, we will take a comprehensive look at how to create workable long-term plans, which can then be broken down into weekly and daily plans and to-do lists. Sounds like a lot of work, but they really help you get a handle on your time, and in doing so, address the root causes of multitasking by scheduling and prioritizing things.
In my own daily work, perhaps the most important tool is being able to briefly plan each task before I start. All you have to do is answer the following questions:
- What am I doing and what are my goals?
- How long will I concentrate?
- What do I do after concentrating?
It’s enough to go over the answers in your mind before you start. In this way, the mind is oriented in advance to focus on the question that needs attention for a certain amount of time. At the same time, you know how long you will be concentrating and what will happen afterward. So again, we can create order and priorities in the midst of chaos.
Focus - maintain your concentration and make it a habit
Once you start working, the biggest challenge is maintaining focus on the object of attention. As mentioned above, one of the best ways to do this is to eliminate potential distractions.
It’s also a good idea to use the Pomodoro Technique, which involves setting a timer (manual or digital) to measure the amount of time you’ll be fully focused. At the end of your brainstorming period, you can take a break and reward yourself with a short moment on your smartphone, for example. A popular Pomodoro tactic is to focus for 25 minutes at a time, followed by a five-minute break. However, it is worth trying different lengths of concentration to find the one that works best for you.
Concentration is a skill that can be practiced like any other skill. So don’t give up in the beginning if you find it difficult to work. Even during a single session, you may find yourself in a flow state, even if you start with zero motivation. The more successful concentration sessions you have, the more natural they will become as part of your work.
Social - consider the human factor
It is very likely that you have other people in your life, some of whom take up your time and your ability to concentrate. Many of the external distractions and temptations to start something new in addition to the first one are related to other people. Maybe you want to check your Whatsapp, your friend asks you to go to the gym, your colleague interrupts you at a critical moment, your child complains of boredom, or your spouse asks you to help with the cooking.
Close people are the best thing in life, but they can also cause interruptions and increase the temptation for our physical environment to start doing other things while we are concentrating.
The best way to eliminate this risk is to simply tell the people around you beforehand that you are going to concentrate and that you want to be able to do so undisturbed. Tell them when you will stop and be available again. This will also improve your social relationships because you’ll be able to focus on them when the time comes.
Finally
I hope you got this far in the article without your attention being diverted to other things. If so, don’t worry. Avoiding multitasking in today’s world is really difficult and requires regular practice. If you’re interested in the subject and want to improve, take a look at our lessons. We also go into more detail about multitasking.