Is your multitasking gypping you and your employer?

In Cognitive Control in Media Multitaskers, by Eyal Ophira, Clifford Nass and Anthony D. Wagner—claim that their findings show  heavy media multi-taskers performing worse on a test of task-switching ability than those who multitasked lightly.

Heavy multi-taskers were worse over time in filtering irrelevant stimuli.

Heavy multi-taskers were deficient in managing memory (cognitive abilities impaired)

Heavy multi-taskers were slower in the ability to switch tasks.

The study  described that multitasking hinders small business owners in working ability.

Well here comes the plug: Please refer to Dr. Rogers' 8 Rules for Project Managers.

Dr. Rogers' Rule No. 3 Focus on product over process.

if the prescribed process at your work is media multi-tasking, change the process, the one you are using probably demonstrates that you are doing lots of work but not getting much production.

Instead of getting lots of irrelevant things done poorly. (Rule 4 Effective and Efficient Work) Try focusing on essential things and work them till they are done.

Turn off your phone and close the e-mail window. That ring tone telling you there is an email might just be a piece of irrelevant junk that diverts you from relevant work. Turn off the ringer on your phone for significant periods of time (maybe even fifteen minutes to start) I did, my phone no longer rings in my house, they go to voice mail without an annoying ring or musical serenade. My phone at work also goes to voicemail for most of the day.

My anecdotal evidence is that i am getting lots more valuable work done in less time.

So try Rule No. 6 If it hasn't been done before, that's reason enough to consider trying it. Turn off the phone, turn off your email dinger, pull one computer application up at a time and finish the task at hand. My guess is you will have a less harried and more productive day.

Let me know how you fare.