Avoid the Multitasking Demon to Get More Done
The theory that the more tasks you undertake during the day, the more productive you'll be, may have merit from time to time--after all who doesn't want to make the most of their day! But in reality, it becomes quite unproductive and often counter-productive if we don't set limits that allow us to concentrate on one task at a time.
Multitasking often means working on multiple projects at your desk without devoting your full concentration to any one task or goal. Researchers have concluded that multitasking is a waste of time because it makes us feel overwhelmed as we scatter our brains in a million directions. If multitasking makes you feel stressed, tired or confused, it may be time to reevaluate how you spend your day and set realistic goals so you can achieve maximum productivity in the least amount of time. The long-term benefits of doing this are an improved sense of mental wellbeing and less anxiety while completing projects quicker!
Whether it’s working on a client project, organizing your office space or cleaning out your inbox, split up your bigger goals into smaller ones that are easier to accomplish. Try to limit your distractions and work on only one thing at a time. It’s likely that you can get more done in any given day than if you spread yourself thin and worry about multiple things at once.
When Multitasking and the Need for Organizing Collide
Take a look around your office space. Is it tidy or is it cluttered? I’m jealous if your desk is clear of clutter and is functional and so clean! If your office isn’t a throw everything room for the family, kudos to you, because not everyone may understand how important organization is especially when starting up something new! As an entrepreneur we are SO ultra-focused on work tasks that organizing our space takes a back seat until piles of papers start to fall over or until the IRS comes knocking at our door because we didn't file that crucial tax document six months ago--oops!
Some people might be inclined to recommend to you (and they’re probably right) that while you’re taking a break from client work, you should multi-task the cleaning of your office. After all, that certainly sounds reasonable. But you must find time to prioritize the cleaning of your workspace over other tasks in order for it to get done in a timely manner and get cleaned up! If you’re just clearing out clutter in 5-minute increments, how many days or weeks will it take until you finish that task?
Instead of looking at your calendar and hoping for opportunity to appear, block off larger time intervals when you are most productive in your schedule. Create a daily to-do list where you find the times when you concentrate the most and do not get easily distracted. Block off an entire morning to devote to clearing out your office; keep your computer off, turn your phone ringer to silent, and focus 100% on decluttering your office. The best part? You’ll be able to concentrate on solutions to your clutter problems instead of being interrupted 12 times by various clients! It gives you peace of mind knowing exactly what needs completing during those larger time blocks with less tasks on hand so that lowering stress levels is easier overall.
Eliminate your multitasking tendencies even more by concentrating on one small corner of the office for a moment. It can help to think about only the area you are in and not the entire space at once. If the pile of papers is overwhelming you, try cleaning up part of that pile rather than looking at all the paper at once. Give yourself permission to give extra attention to a particular area because doing this will make you feel as though you’ve made progress.
Turn Your Need to Organize into a Game
If you’re having trouble staying focused, grab a kitchen timer or set a timer on your phone, and work as quickly as you can before the timer goes off. Set it for any amount of time you choose, then get to work. This idea is also known as the Pomodoro Technique where you set a timer for 25 minutes, stay focused on your task until the timer goes off, then take a 5-minute break before resetting the timer. Many people use this method when working at their computer desk, but it certainly works when doing physical work, too!
Another option is to hire a productivity consultant or professional organizer. They’ll help you think of unique solutions and will be able to contain the spread of clutter throughout your office.
It’s easy to get distracted and multitask when you are working on projects. But what we may not realize is that multitasking, and task switching can have a negative impact on our productivity and can make us less effective in our work. We hope that you have found this blog post helpful, and that you are now able to better focus on the task at hand and avoid getting distracted. If you have any other questions about how to improve your productivity, please leave a comment below. Thanks for reading!
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