Discussion: Is Multitasking Productive Or Distracting?
By Laura Braden
I recently saw a Frontline episode (called the Digital Nation) that just scared the be-jesus out of me.
One of their main points (I didn’t catch them all because I was Facebooking and working on a memo at the time), is that multitasking might not be a skill – like being organized or creative – it might actually be a trick that you play on yourself to THINK you’re being productive.
Hold the phone – wh-what?!?! Thankfully, it’s been awhile since I’ve been on an interview, but I’ve always included “multitasking” as one of my best qualities – as well as admired people who seemed able to juggle several tasks at once. So do I really have to re-write my cover letter? What’s going on?!?!
Frontline uses the example of college students with an essay assignment. They write a paragraph and then check email. Write a paragraph…check Facebook. Write a paragraph…you get the point. All the while, they think they’re rockin’ it, but when they re-read what they literally just wrote, it’s disjointed and well…subpar work.
That’s because (60 second summary) SOME scientists believe that when you multitask you’re not actually giving the task 100% of your attention as you jump back and forth. In fact, the University of Michigan researchers say you’re actually 20-40% less productive while you’re multitasking.
If you have 10 minutes, read Laura Earnest’s short blogs on the “Dangers of multitasking and how to stop” and “Single tasking.” If you have 90 minutes, you should definitely watch the full Frontline episode – absolutely fascinating.
And what do y’all think? I tend to believe that its great for mindless activities on your to-do list, but for tasks that require real concentration (like memos, press releases, writing articles for this blog), it’s time we stop checking Facebook, mute Pandora and focus until we get to a real stopping point.
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