Back in the day when I was much younger, I had the belief that the more I could multi-task, the better wife, mother, and employee I was. I wanted to be the queen of multi-tasking, and I often joked that I could get so much done that my to-do lists could have their to-do lists.
I thought this because that is what the world told me I needed to be. You were revered as a superhero if you could efficiently run a career and have the perfect home life without asking for help. And who doesn’t want to be a superhero?
In interviews, employers would ask, “Can you multi-task?”
I would reply something like, “Can I multi-task? You won’t find a better multi-tasker than me.”
When I started learning about meditating and mindfulness, my ideas on multi-tasking started to change.
What I discovered is that multi-tasking decreases productivity. Yes, decreases! Tell that to your next potential employer in an interview. However, the fact is, our brains are designed to do one thing at a time.
When we give our full attention to something, we can finish it more efficiently and accurately. The more we give our attention to many tasks, the less we accomplish, and our stress levels increase.
I’ve become pretty good at single-tasking in most of my life. However, I still find times when I’m working on the computer that I revert to multi-tasking. The result of this? I often find that I’m going back and having to re-do things over. If you ever catch a mistake in my articles or social media, it’s because I was multi-tasking. It’s an excellent reminder for me that I need to focus on one thing at a time.
I highly encourage you to practice this challenge longer than just this week. The more you practice single-tasking, the quicker your brain will be rewired to focus on one thing at a time. That means you learn to mindfully live your life, which is my wish for everyone.
You can do two things at once, but you can’t focus effectively on two things at once.” – Gary Keller
Your mindfulness challenge for this week is to learn to single task.
- Make a daily to-do list and prioritize your tasks. I have created a daily to-do list that you can print here.
- Each day pick one thing from your to-do list and write it down. This is the task that you are going to practice single-tasking.
- Remove any distractions. Clear your workspace by turning off phones, close down emails, hang a sign to please not interrupt you, etc.
- Focus on your chosen task. Use a watch or set a timer if you wish, but give yourself a minimum of ten to fifteen minutes to focus on this one task.
- Stay present. While you are doing this task, remember to be mindful by staying present during this time. If you catch your mind wandering to what you need to do next, that’s normal! Gently refocus your attention back to your chosen task. Continue doing this for the duration you have set.
- When you are finished, write down what you learned. Record any feelings that you felt during this time. Remember, any belief is perfectly fine. You have wired your mind to multi-task, and you may experience some anxiousness, but don’t worry that feeling will eventually go away.
- Set aside a time each day to practice this and stick to it. Increase your time or tasks as you feel comfortable doing so. Keep growing and expanding from there.
- Let this be your new motto: “Do less, with more focus.”
Other articles you might have missed this week:
Holiday Self-Care, Eight Ideas to Relax and Enjoy
Peace & Love,
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