Comments on: Productivity Tip: Multitasking slows you down

By: Dave Crenshaw

Dave Crenshaw — Mon, 23 May 2011 00:33:14 +0000

Multitasking slows us down. Multitaskers experience only an illusion of productivity. They feel they are doing a lot, when in fact all they are doing is constantly stopping and restarting. They completing very little at all.

To learn more about the effects of multitasking, take my free exercise at http://www.davecrenshaw.com/exercise

By: roger pack

roger pack — Wed, 12 Sep 2007 16:45:05 +0000

With me taking a break every so often really helps. Also with some tasks you have to start them and ‘let them go’ in which case context switching is still the best bet.
Also when I tried to unsubscribe to comments via email of another post on your site, it returned me

_____@gmail.com is not subscribed to any posts on this site. [i.e. it didn't work]
Thanks!
-Roger

By: Tom Welsh

Tom Welsh — Wed, 13 Jun 2007 11:45:30 +0000

Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi came to similar conclusions in his work on “flow” (several books). It takes the mind some time (up to an hour or even more) to reach ideal working conditions. But a single interruption, no matter how brief, can land you right back where you began. That’s why people engaged in important creative work need to be protected against interruptions.

What often doesn’t emerge from discussions among developers is that flow is hardly relevant to “people-facing” activities. That’s why a salesman usually seems happy to chat to many different people in a short time. He does not need to think deeply, but is instead engaged in natural and pleasurable conversation (and possibly persuasion). These are tasks for which the human brain evolved, and most people find them easy and undemanding. Likewise politicians.

Another motive for multitasking (especially when ostentatious) is as a form of bragging. You can show the boss, clients, or whomever that you are able to juggle many tasks with complete control and aplomb. If applicable, you can also demonstrate that you are not one of those strange “geeks” who need to retreat into a room and wear headphones in order to accomplish anything!

By: thesamet

thesamet — Thu, 12 Apr 2007 04:43:55 +0000

It’s impossible to do any programming in an environment with lots of interruptions. When coding, a programmer has a lots of data loaded in his mind: scope of variables, names of functions, state of the program and so on. It is like a tower of cards perfectly built in his mind.

When someone enters the room and asks “where did you buy this cool jeans?” the entire tower collapse in his mind. And entering the same state of mind again takes time.

By: Steven Harman

Steven Harman — Thu, 12 Apr 2007 03:30:08 +0000

The same context switching logic can also be applied to interruptions and their impact on productivity.

I used work in a cubicle-farm and I would start my day a few hours after most of the other folks in my area – partially because I’m a night owl – and then stay later so I could actually get some work done. The number of interruptions dropped significantly after 6:00 pm, and as a result my productivity scaled!

By: Alex Goad

Alex Goad — Wed, 11 Apr 2007 15:01:18 +0000

Good Stuff, your graph really makes it sink in.

I have to say I agree with you nearly all the way. If people focused on one task the way you mention, not only would they finish faster, but they would have a better chance of finishing in the first place.

(I come from a self-employed background where finishing can be optional)

On the other hand, when I write long reports or short books, in shots of 10-15 pages a day, I find I have to switch to something else after a time or I start losing the edge…

You software developers are hard to beat when it comes to focus…