“Multitasking is just an illusion, in reality our brain is micro-switching from one task to the other.”

Happy Monday everyone.  As you know, Monday is our organization and time day.  Today we are going to talk about multitasking, but before we dig on I just wanted to get you organized for the rest of the week.  Here is our line up:

As contractors we always have a lot going on.  On any given day we could be dealing with our crews, subcontractors, suppliers, owners, clients, and a litany of other interruptions.  Since this is our world we often get the misconception that we are good at multitasking.  I hear this a lot from my coaching clients until I give them the test.  So, I want you to take the same test.

Take out a pen, piece of paper and open your stopwatch app on your phone and get ready. the test is in two pasts, the first part we are going to write out I LOVE CONTRACTING on one line and then 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 under each letter on the second line, all while being timed.  After you complete this write down your time.  Now for part two your are going to write the same thing as you did in part one but this time you have to write a letter then the number.  So you would start out writing I then a 1 below it, then L and a 2 below it, continue like that until you complete the exercise then stop the timer.  Write down your time.  Which one were you faster on?

Most people are not extremely efficient in switching from task to task.  This causes us to waste a lot of time throughout our days when we think we are being our most productive.  On the I Love Contracting test I had a 50% increase in the time it took me on part 2.  If I applied that increase to what I did everyday, I am wasting over 3 hours a day.  How would you like to have that time back.

Here is another test you can take to see how switching tasks effects your performance.

Now that you know the truth about multitasking it’s time that we take control of it.  We cannot eliminate the need to multitask all together, there is just too much going on to just focus on one thing at a time all the time.  What I recommend is establishing “No Multitasking Zones/Times” for when you are trying to complete those important tasks that you need to get done each day.  Block out all distractions and just focus on that one task until it’s complete or at a convenient stopping point.  This will allow you to complete these important tasks quicker and move on to other things.

Save the multitasking for times when you are working on things that won’t have a huge impact if you are interrupted like catching up on you social media or checking the latest lead reports.

[tweetthis]Multitasking in reality is micro-switching; Are you good at it?[/tweetthis]

Take-Action Steps

1. Take the I Love Contracting test
2. Set up No Multitasking Zones/Times for when you are working on critical tasks

Resources

I LOVE CONTRACTING multitasking test