Is Multitasking Really Efficient? Can you really be productive while multitasking? It’s not my intention to be a killjoy, but if you think you can multitask to be more productive, you’re actually wrong. It’s not your fault. We all grew up thinking we should do it. Heck, I even bragged about being able to do so many things at once.
The truth is, having your brain focus on two different tasks simultaneously is just not possible, according to science. It turns out, instead of giving true focus to multiple tasks, what your brain is actually doing behind the scenes is flipping back & forth between them…. and it’s costing you time and energy (two things, I know you don’t have much of, Lady Boss).
Your brain cannot multitask the way you think it can. It uses more time, resources, and brainpower when you’re trying to do multiple things at once. It’s actually very in-efficient. This is because your mind is forced to take the time to switch in-between tasks and to refocus and concentrate, which takes time that could have been used more beneficially.
Unfortunately, many organizations and companies have even adopted this widely misunderstood and popular term (“multitasking”) and demand this ability as one of the crucial criteria while searching for employees. They’re looking for people willing to overwork themselves or do tasks that usually require two or more people—ultimately saving them money. Maybe you’ve even listed this as a quality you’re looking for when hiring an assistant for your own team. But it only results in lowered productivity and lower-quality work.
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Is Multitasking Efficient?
The short answer is NO.
Here are four reasons why multitasking is actually bad for home business and definitely not efficient:
Multitasking leads to poor choices and simple mistakes.
Trying to do multiple things at the same time provokes anxiety and poor health
Multitasking inhibits innovation and creativity
- You don’t enjoy the process
1 - Multitasking Leads to Poor Choices and simple mistakes
Your brain needs time to filter out irrelevant information and focus on the task at hand. Maybe you’ve heard people talking about getting into a “flow” state. You know that rock star feeling when you’re really cranking away at a task & you’re just getting soooo much done? Multitasking makes it impossible to get into that super productive flow state.
To take it a step further, multitasking can also mean lesser quality work, more mistakes, and possibly even injuries that directly harm your productivity, reputation, and trustworthiness as a home business. I know that may sound drastic, but it happens.
2 - Multitasking Provokes Anxiety and Health Issues
- Anxiety – Anxiety is caused by your brain quickly shifting attention from one thing to another. Often the process of going back and forth can be overwhelming as you try to relearn and acquire new information simultaneously.
- Poor Health – Anxiety, in turn, affects your immune system making you more susceptible to illnesses and viruses.
3 - Multitasking Inhibits Innovation and Creativity
There is only so much your brain can do. Multitasking kills your ability to concentrate and focus, blocking your ability to be fully creative. Innovation and creativity are vital for a successful home business. If everyone had the same business ideas, no one or only a select few who rise to the top could truly be successful. What if, instead, your creativity took hold and you found ways to stand out amongst your competitors and draw people into your own unique personality, branding, and ideas?
3 - You Don't Enjoy the Process
Just because it is a business and requires work doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be enjoying it. Sure, you may have tasks or tedious things that kind of stink, but that doesn’t mean you can’t do something to change it so that you love what you are doing. The more you personalize your business, the happier and more passionate you will be about it. Since perception is reality, feeling you will be successful already actually makes you more successful! When you make your passion and your work the same thing, you won’t ever want to let it go.
So what does all of this mean?
30 Days to Maximize Your Home Business Productivity
This blog post is part of a challenge series called “30 Days to Maximize Your Home Business Productivity.” You’ll be able to find the whole productivity challenge here once it’s all been posted. Bookmark the page & set a daily reminder to go back & read a new post each day for some extra motivation, encouragement, & home business productivity tips.
Grab your free home biz quarterly planning guide:
Discover the core values and habits needed for home biz success, what everyday habits to avoid like a plague, and how a simple change in your plans can maximize your productivity.
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About the Author: I'm Misty, wife to a handsome fella & momma of two amazing kiddos that I am so blessed to be able to stay at home with. I did a lot of struggling in home biz quicksand before I started researching, learning from, and invterviewing top earners to learn their exact systems for getting customers and recruiting... and began sharing their secrets. I quickly got overwhelmed trying to #DOITALL and realized home biz success boils down to having solid systems and implementing consistently. Now I'm peeling back the curtain for you so you don't have to waste time & mental calories (like I did) trying to create success while also saving your sanity. Come join the conversation in our Free Life Ninjas Community.