Multi Tasking: Pros and Cons

Good Uses of Multitasking

Multitasking can be a good thing when trying to get a couple of things done in little time. An example of good multitasking would be listening to the morning news and brushing teeth at the same time.

Another example is talking to a friend while taking a walk. The cell phone and headset have become popular ways to multitask as opposed to old fashioned ways that included having to stay in the home and talk on a land line, which offered little movement.

Poor Uses of Multitasking

Poor uses of multitasking include talking on the cell phone while driving or riding a bike, texting while driving, and typing on the computer while listening to a co-worker. Often, performing these tasks simultaneously makes for a bad recipe.

According to author Evelyn Gray CPO-CD, from the SelfGrowth.com article titled, “Is Multitasking Good or Bad?” doing more than one thing at a time actually confuses the brain and increases a person’s stress level. Gray says that when it comes to the workplace and multitasking “You up your stress level, you lose your clarity and your productivity level, and the bottom line is, you put in longer hours and make less money.”

Doing One Task at a Time

Focusing on one task at a time is probably the best task to do. The reason is because a person does not get distracted by another task being performed simultaneously. Problems as a result of split attention do not occur. Doing one task at a time is less dangerous, too. If a person is jogging with a headset on, it is probable that a clear focus on what is happening in the surrounding environment is not really present. Or, if a person is cooking and talking on the phone while trying to discipline the kids, might there be a disaster on the forefront? This type of multitasking can lead to trouble.

Consider the good and poor choices when multitasking. What tasks require more focused attention? Is there a danger involved? In some cases, it's more beneficial to back to the old fashioned way of doing one thing at a time and get more done with better focus.

Read more at Suite101: The Pros and Cons of Multitasking: Is Doing More than One Thing at a Time More Efficient? http://www.suite101.com/content/the-pros-and-cons-of-multitasking-a221471#ixzz1640SjMfp


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I prefer multi tasking as long as it does not affect each of your activities. It saves time, thus consumes your energy. Anyway, it's a good brain exercise though. Hehe.