has this happened to you? i'm really glad we get to spend a nice quietmeal together tonight. i know it's really rare to just sit down andconcentrate on us but i'm really like it when we... beep
Android TV multitasking, do you have to get on your phone again?!?do you have to respond to every noise it makes? i can...this might be something important. it could be like work related...hold on. i'm sure it's just another tweet.
well...but...like...i mean...what? technology has completely changed how withinteract with each other, our work, and ourselves. we’re bombarded with 5 times as much informationas we were in the 80s, it pulls us in through immediate notifications, and people expectimmediate responses no matter where you are and what you’re doing. most of us cope by “multitasking†— doingtwo things at once. we keep our email open while we work on documents, continue textingwith one group of friends while we’re hanging out with another, and scroll through twitterwhile watching netflix. here’s the thing though — humans can’tmultitask!
now if we’re doing two different thingsat the same time, and one of them is something we’ve done a bunch of times, we can sortamultitask. like driving your daily commute and listening to music. but the moment oneof those tasks gets difficult, like driving in a new part of town or trying to find aparking spot, you’re going to have to turn off the music. when people think they’re multitasking… i’m doing my homework and watching tv!!! rachel will you accept this rose? wait..who just...who did he give it to?
…what they’re actually doing is quicklyswitching from one thing to another. try watching both of these videos at the sametime. this isn’t multitasking, it’s called taskswitching, and it makes you dumb. most people think they’re really good atmultitasking but when psychologists studied this in the lab they found people made 20%more mistakes when multitasking. not only are you doing a worse job when you multitaskbut it also takes a lot longer to get things done. and the more you multitask, the harderit becomes to recover from distractions. your brain is built to do one thing at a time…andeven that takes effort! the default setting on your brain is day dreaming mode. this iswhere your thoughts wander from one thing
to another. but focused attention is supercomplex task. you have to filter out distractions in your environment, ignore thoughts aboutdoing something that’s more interesting, remember important information, make decisionsabout what to do, and solve problems as they come up. all that work is really exhaustingfor your brain. and after awhile, your brain needs to switch back to day dreaming modein order to recharge. protip - every couple of hours take a breakfrom your work and daydream. just let your mind wander as you go on a walk, look outa window, or listen to music. and no, you can’t read your email or check social media— stuff like that triggers focused attention and undoes your daydreaming recharge.
this is why i hate open offices. while theymake employees feel more connected, all those distractions have been found to hurt attentionspans, productivity, creativity, and lead to more stress. open offices take away controlof your environment. when you can’t control your environment and limit distractions, yourattention is going to suffer and you’ll do a bad job. the most important skill you need to learnto be productive is to concentrate on one thing at one time. learning how to pick atask, embracing it fully, silencing your phone and putting it away, closing all the othertabs on your browser, shutting the door, blocking out other noises in the environment, and keepingit up for a set period of time — that is
what’s going to lead to success in thisera of constant distraction. how do you stay focused when you need to getwork done? let me know in the comments below. i’m at ali mattu on twitter. be sure tolike the psych show on facebook and subscribe on twitter.
