The Multitasking Lie Everyone Believes
How to undo the silent damage.
You’re not bad at multitasking. Your brain just wasn’t built for it.
In fact, multitasking doesn’t really exist. It’s a scientific misnomer. A myth perpetuated by toxic hustle culture. When you ‘multitask’, you are task switching— doing two separate tasks in rapid succession. Yet, your brain is wired to do one thing at a time.
Even though 100% of us believe we are excellent multitaskers, the truth is only 2.5% of human brains can effectively multitask.
Inside the Multitasking Mind
Multitasking has a detrimental effect on your brain. It lowers your cognition, memory and attention. Ironically, studies show multitasking slows down your productivity by up to 40%. The most troubling aspect of multitasking? Its effect on your prefrontal cortex, the area of your brain that’s responsible for strategic thinking, organization and future planning.
When you multitask, you become less skilled at solving complex problems. The world is filled with complex problems that urgently need to be solved. You cannot afford to multitask. Learn to monotask instead.
Monotasking is the act of doing one thing at a time. It can protect your prefrontal cortex, lower your stress and burnout, and even improve your productivity. You can learn to practice monotasking through a technique called time blocking.
The Magic of Monotasking
Time blocking is like cooking for a dinner party. You have 4 dishes to prepare but instead of cooking them all at once, you focus on one dish at a time while the rest simmer on the stove. Similarly, let’s say you have 4 tasks to complete within the next few hours. Instead of doing them all at once (which you now know is biologically impossible) follow this workflow instead:
Task 1: Spend 10 to 20 minutes on task 1, followed by a 2 to 5 minute break
Task 2: Spend 10 to 20 minutes on task 2, followed by short break
Task 3 and Task 4: Repeat the format above
At the end of this time, you’ll have made progress on all four tasks without compromising your prefrontal cortex. Initially, your time blocks may be a short 10 minutes, but with practice you’ll be able to focus for longer stretches of time like 30 minutes (try not to exceed 50 minutes). What should you do during your breaks? Be intentional. Stretch, breathe, hydrate or take a walk down your hallway. Congratulate yourself with each monotasking session for rewiring your brain for less stress and sharpening your focus.
This week’s stress reset: Try to monotask at least once this week. Remember, your brain was never meant to hustle nonstop. Let it rest and watch what happens.
Next week, I’ll share another science-backed reset to give your brain a break from information overload.
Until then,