The Multitasking Misnomer

What you’ve been doing wrong and how to fix it.

Aug 23, 2021

👋 Hi, Sabir here. Welcome to this week’s issue of The Pursuit of Perfection, your weekly guide to help you do things well without half-assing them!

If you were to eavesdrop on general conversations relating to workplace efficiency, it wouldn’t be surprising if you were to encounter talk of multitasking.

There seems to be an acceptance amongst many that multitasking is the holy grail; do it well, you succeed. Do it poorly, fail. I don’t believe it to be as simple as that.

Let’s for a moment ponder upon its definition:

Considering how much weight is given to this word in the workplace, the accepted definition (above) is pretty lacklustre and uninspiring: the performance of more than one task at the same time - how boring!

Unless you are, say, a circus performer who juggles and spins plates simultaneously, how can you possibly expect yourself to perform more than one task at the same time? it's simply impossible and ineffective, even if you tried.

If I may, I would ask that you consider this definition of multitasking instead:

To give each and every task the same amount of love and care in order of priority at a given time.

Do you not feel this is a more wholesome and uplifting way of looking at multitasking? I certainly do.

I have found this to be the most effective way of managing and delivering every project that I’ve worked on.

You may be wondering:

Well, how do I know which task to give priority?

I cannot answer that question for you. This is where you have to rely on your intuition and judgement, trust in them.

Cool, Calm, Collected

Depending on the type of project(s) you are working on, it is likely that you will have some length of deadline attached; be it daily, weekly, monthly, perhaps longer.

The shorter the deadline is (especially daily ones), the greater the potential for feeling anxious and even stress - because you have just a handful of hours/days to deliver a result.

If you ever feel this way, it’s fine, be cool about it. You will naturally experience these emotions because you’ve set your standards so high and don’t want to fail, that’s all.

From my experience, these emotions are the perfect fuel for extraordinary results because you have very little room for error. This forces you to keep your eye on the target at all times.

Even if you are working outside of a daily deadline, the same principles apply; your ability to stay cool, calm and collected will undoubtedly be your greatest aid.

See you next week,

Sabir 👋