Multi-tasking is a lie.
You aren’t good at multitasking.
No one really is.
Especially not when it comes to the kind of multitasking we try to do at work. Going back and forth between emails and substantive work, trying to draft something while we are participating in a meeting, etc.
But we sure do love telling ourselves we are good at it.
And if you’re a woman, you’ve probably been taught the myth that you are better at it (or at least that you should be).
Multitasking is often a product of anxiety. And creates more anxiety.
First, you overfill your plate because you are anxious that you aren’t doing enough or are too worried about what someone will think if you say “no” (or both).
Then you get anxious about how full your plate is and how behind you are, so you try to juggle multiple tasks at the same time to stop that anxiety.
Which means you are taking longer to do things and doing them poorly because humans aren’t good at multitasking. Which creates more anxiety.
So much unnecessary anxiety.
Multitasking harms productivity. It lowers your cognitive function. It reduces efficiency. It leads to mistakes and worsens your performance. Because you aren’t multitasking - you’re just task switching and giving it a prettier name.
Yet, we still pretend we are good at it. Or chastise ourselves because we aren’t. Because we think being a good multitasker means something about us.
We’ve been taught our entire lives that our value as human beings lies in how much we do. How productive we are. How much we achieve. So of course we think being able to multitask is a good way to measure our own value.
But multitasking has no moral value. So the fact that you aren’t good at it (because you’re human), doesn’t mean anything about you.
Once you ditch the idea that you can be or should be good at multitasking, you get to solving the real problem: why you feel the urge to multitask AND why you have so much on your plate that you think you have to.
A ❤️ note to you: If you always try to multitask or feel anxious or overwhelmed all or most of the time, let’s solve that problem. I can help you take control of your schedule and be more efficient and more productive in less time. Just sign up for a call with me at jenndealcoaching.as.me/consult. You can also pick up a free copy of my 10 Ways to Be and Feel Less Busy that I created for lawyers just like you: https://mailchi.mp/jenndealcoaching/10ways.
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