Multitasking

Does it ever happen to you that you are having a meal in your room, and that is all you do? To me it happens very rarely. Every time I have to watch or read something at the same time. And if that thing requires my attention, I find myself in awkward positions with half-chewed food in my mouth staring at the screen.

What we describe as multitasking actually does not constitute doing several tasks all at once. Our brains can’t really concentrate on more than one thing. What we perceive as multitasking is essentially switch-tasking, or rapidly going back and forth between two or more tasks. That whole ordeal can reduce your productivity by 40%, making you slower, more stressed, and more likely to make mistakes.

But of course, you must think you can do better than the average. Check out this video for a quick test on how your performance is affected by multitasking, and share your results in the comments. My timing moved up from 30 seconds to 47 seconds after trying to multitask, and I felt a lot more confused afterwards. And also, my handwriting is not nearly as pretty.

Sources:

The Cognitive Costs of Multitasking http://psychology.about.com/od/cognitivepsychology/a/costs-of-multitasking.htm