Last weekend I was at my friend’s dance recital. I was a little stressed about an upcoming test so during intermission, I pulled out my laptop and textbook and did what every normal college girl would do: read out of the textbook and took notes on my laptop while giving the Spark Notes version of my study abroad experience to my dancing friend’s parents and making lunch plans via text. Sounds like some real talent, right? I even remember thinking, “Wow, I am SUCH a great multi-tasker.” Wrong. A reality check would have told me that I was retaining no information from the readings and looking like an uninterested ditz to my friend’s parents. Moral of the story? If you think you’re a good multi-tasker…you’re not. And it’s useless to argue because scientists have proven that it’s actually impossible for the human brain to do more than one thing at once. Still doubtful? Here are the four biggest reasons why multitasking hurts you.
1. You lose time
If you value efficiency, you probably shouldn’t try to multitask. Contrary to popular belief, your brain cannot do more than one thing at once. What we call “multitasking” is really our skill of switching from one task to another quickly. And, though quick, that switch takes time. Constantly moving from your phone, to Facebook, to the paper you’re writing, to your email, back to your paper, causes you to move a lot slower than just biting the bullet and getting your paper done in the first place.
2. It stresses you out
Just looking at the amount of tabs I have up on Safari right now stresses me out and that’s not even hard-core multitasking. You’d be surprised at how good it feels to do one thing at a time. Make a to-do list and systematically go down it one item at a time. Then notice how good you feel each time you cross something off.
3. You’re limiting your mental breakthroughs
If you’re like me, every time you get to a mental block, you immediately switch tasks. Not only will that stress you out even more (see #2), but it also makes coming back to that task even more difficult. Instead, take a deep breath and try to reason through the problem that’s got you stuck. The more your wheels turn without stopping, the closer you’ll be to a breakthrough.
4. You do everything worse
I know that sounds dramatic so let me explain what I mean. Like I said earlier, multitasking means that your brain is switching from one task to another. Switching tasks isn’t the same thing as doing two tasks at once. So when you think you’re paying attention to your both professor and that text you’re sending, think again because it’s physically impossible. Instead, you end up switching your attention back and forth so many times that you 1) are hearing a disjointed version of your professor’s lecture, and 2) are probably making a lot of typos in your text. Realize that one comes at the expense of the other and prioritize.
What’s next? Maybe when you start writing that upcoming paper turn your phone on silent and put it our of arm’s reach. Reward yourself with chocolate each hour you spend without going on Facebook. Be creative! Your brain says thank you.
Sources:
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=95256794
http://blogs.hbr.org/bregman/2010/05/how-and-why-to-stop-multitaski.html
This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at UVA chapter.