Running errand at the supermarket while checking the email and answering queries of customers for your online store, these are the things that we do almost every day these days. As many people work for the 9-5 job while they keep their side hustles. I wonder though, how many people accomplish things at the same time? Is it possible that one could plausibly make an output while he does other things like checking the email as he speaks on the phone and checking the latest cheap flight? What kind of output could he make through this? Is it something well-accomplished or is it half-baked? In today’s article, we will be discussing things about:
- multitasking: the advantages and disadvantages plus the challenges that a worker experiences
- tips on how to multitask in a very difficult situation
- the role of standing desk converters in your everyday operation
So, let’s start with the disadvantages and advantages of Multitasking:
Disadvantages and Advantages:
In the Journal of Technology and Society from The New Atlantis, author Cristine Rosen penned in her article: The Myth of Multitasking the advice of Lord Chesterfield to his son in his letter to him that a man should practice singular focus not just to structure his time but because this is the true mark of intelligence opposite to the things that a person with weak and frivolous mind does: agitation, bustle, and hurry. According to the letter of Lord Chesterfield as well, a strong mind is the one who could go steady and focused on one subject. In this article as well, the author mentioned that in the advent of the era of new technology; in the late 1990s to early 2000s, companies had had applicants that included the term multitasking in their work skills. This was because that era was the birth of handheld digital devices which paved the way for the practice of multitasking among the people from the working class. This was part of the Digital Revolution and as this began, the lifestyle rapidly changed, demands of faster transactions were made by the customers, and the work setting had also changed; people had started communicating in a faster manner hence multitasking became a cultural phenomenon. Despite the rising need for multitasking at work and at home, numerous studies prove that doing different activities simultaneously is detrimental to the mind and body. One of the pillars of these groundbreaking studies was the one done in 2010 by neuroscientists from Inserm, a French medical research agency. It was found out that our brains could only handle two tasks at a time. Doing more than that could bring possibilities of making errors. Another explanation given was the findings of the Stanford researchers on the heavy multitaskers. They found out that these individuals experienced the inability to filter what’s not necessary among the tasks that they did and ended up doing mistakes with the most important work plus they found it difficult to organize their thoughts.
Looking at the facts mentioned above which are accurate and well-researched, the next questions will challenge the studies done to multitaskers. In the present situation, could we continuously stick to the single focus? Is multitasking no good at this time that most people are working from home and both the transactions and operations are remote? What if the multitasker had mastered repetitive learning and the tasks that he does were already honed and practiced over time? An example is a real estate agent who works from home and does her client calls as she makes pancakes for her sons. At the end of the call, she’s able to set the table and goes back to her work area without making an error. How could this be possible? That’s because of repetitive learning. This was empirically demonstrated by Sir Hermann Ebbinghaus, a psychologist who did a prolonged series of experiments on human memory. He found out that the retention of learning improves as the number of times the information would be practiced. So take a look again at the situation wherein the real estate agent simultaneously cooks, sets the table, talks to the client, and works at her computer. The first two activities- cooking pancakes and setting tables were light and could be mastered with repetition and it’s like it sends signals to the brain and conditions it hence making those movements (cooking and moving the chairs) like a reflex action. Thus, the agent was able to do different things at the same time.
In conclusion, multitasking is not a no-good activity. Just like what the ancient and medieval thinkers have mentioned for years, our brains are so powerful that whatever we condition ourselves to achieve becomes our reality and manifests well. So, with continuous practice, we can easily master little activities and do major tasks at the same time avoiding errors throughout the process.
Tips on How to Multitask Effectively:
Multitasking is a challenge for all workers in this time of the pandemic especially with the work setting where a lot of nuisances are present at home, it’s pretty difficult to concentrate and finish tasks easily. Hence, here are some tips to do multitasking that is more effective with the right choice of product such as the Standing Desk Converters from Flexispot.
a. Make a To-do List
Journaling or scripting can make it easier for you to remember a task. You may write down the things that you need to do on a note and post it on the large surface of your desk converter; the next day, you would not need to worry about finishing a task easily. You can simultaneously write the grocery items that you’d buy after work hours while you take an important call.
b. Do the Mise en Place
Mise en Place is a French term for setting up or putting things in place. This is used in the culinary industry. Hence, it’s also applicable in the workplace. On your desk converter, place all the things that you’ll be needing on the next day- from the laptop to the miscellaneous, just be mindful and organize the surface well. Flexispot’s Standing Desk Converter can carry important devices such as your laptop, notepad, or pen holders. You can smoothly switch from sitting to standing and you may put it in different places so imagine the ease it brings especially when you’re a working mom who juggles work and household work.
Doing different tasks at the same time is not as easy as 123. It takes a lot of practice to master multitasking. It’s a big challenge to plausibly finish two to three tasks in a short time but with discipline and the right devices or equipment such as the Standing Desk Converter, multitasking is a very enjoyable thing to do.
