The Art of SingleTasking

Who begins too much accomplishes little.

German Proverb

The ability to multitask carries along with it the reputation of being smarter or better skilled. Those who can carry on several tasks at once are regarded as great achievers. I’ve been thinking about how I work lately and often what comes to mind is the pressure to multitask.  There are a lot of goals I want accomplish and there are a lot of things expected of me that seem to require the skill of multitasking in order to be successful.

What is multitasking? The definition for multitask I found online was ‘to describe a person doing several things at once‘. So is multitasking truly when you are doing multiple things at one time? How do we define ‘at once’? One can be doing multiple tasks at one time, but as you take a closer look, are we not switching between several tasks very quickly? For example,  I am considered to be multitasking when I am reading a book, doing the laundry and watching TV all at the same time, am I not? But when you dissect those tasks down and take a closer look, I’m simply switching focus, rather quickly, between the tasks that are occurring at the same time. When the TV program is at a point that is not as interesting, or it goes to commercial, I read a few more paragraphs of my book. When the TV program is something that perks my interest, my focus shifts from the book to the television. When my hears hear the washer buzzer, I set my book down and throw the clothes in the dryer.

So I’m not necessarily doing multiple tasks all at the same precise time, but switching my focus between single tasks rather quickly. Of course, there are some tasks that you can perform at the same time. For example, sitting on an exercise bike, while reading a book. The tasks don’t necessarily compete with each other for your focus. So you can sort of go into auto-pilot while you read. But what if you are training for a specific bicycling event and your pace is very important. Your biking will require more focus than if you are just trying to get in 30 minutes of exercise. You will be drawn away from your book more often.

Levels of multitasking: If multitasking is changing your focus between tasks occurring at the same time, then are you not multitasking pretty much all the time? We all play different roles. I am a father, a husband, an employee, a volunteer, an entrepreneur. Am I not multitasking those roles? If I work on spending time with my children and giving them the love and affection they desire before dinner and then after dinner I have a meeting with some of my clients, aren’t I multitasking between, parent and businessman? I’m still a parent while I’m in the meeting, and I’m still a businessman while I’m playing with my children because during either of those activities something could happen that causes me to focus on the other role. While I’m playing with my children, my clients could call to tell me they will be late and I choose to answer the phone. While I’m in the meeting I could hear the cry of one of my children and leave the meeting to run to their rescue.

Is Multitasking always better? I think the answer is determined by how important the task is, and how much focus is needed. If your tasks are trivial and you can handle several tasks at one time without sacrificing the quality of the task, then multitasking is a great way to get a lot done at once. However, lets look at some situations where multitasking would be inappropriate:

• Relationships: If you are out on a romantic date with your spouse, ask them if they prefer to have you multitasking and checking the sports scores on your phone while discussing your relationship. Or ask your daughter if she doesn’t mind you talking on the phone with a client during the middle of her tea party with you.
• Depth: This is similar to relationships, but could be relevant for any task. Do you think you would get the same insight out of a book you read while watching TV as you would sitting outside on a swing in your back yard? You might be able to acquire the same concepts from the book, but you would miss out on the overall big picture. You would sacrifice the joy of reading. You would sacrifice the relaxation you receive from taking in a great book. What are you losing by multitasking?
• Progress: When you really need to get a task done, what do you typically do? You lock yourself in your room and you focus entirely on that task. There is no doubt that when you place all of your attention on one task you can get it done much quicker. Do you have tasks stringing along or unfinished projects you can’t quite seem to get done because you have a hundred other projects going on? Schedule some time to focus only on the one task and finally reach the finish line.
• Creativity: I find that when I focus entirely on one task and give it all of my attention I tend to come up with new or creative solutions. If I’m only giving half of my attention to a project it will eventually get done, but without being spectacular at all. I sacrifice the creativity when I allow the project to simply become a task to check off my list instead of pouring my full self into the project.

Choosing to SingleTask: I believe, especially with our busy schedules, multitasking is a skill that is always beckoning us. It’s easy to get caught up in many tasks or projects at one time, but is not something lost when this happens. If a project, relationship or role you have is important enough to you, ask yourself if it is worth the time to give it your full attention. That’s basically what it comes down to, you are trading time for relationship, depth, progress or creativity. The problem we face is that urgent will always compete with important. We need to choose to focus our time on what is important. Its okay if the floors don’t get swept today and you are able to be whisked away into your child’s imagination for an afternoon tea party. It’s okay if you don’t find out if your team advanced to the sweet 16 if you trade that time for the intimacy of listening to your wife’s dreams and purpose. Choose to be intentional about what you give your time to and watch those areas flourish. As the old saying goes, anything worth doing, is worth doing well.

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