It seems like just about everyone is multitasking 100% of the time.
Even when I was in University, it was not unusual to see textbooks from one class cracked open, social media conversation windows lining a laptop screen, cell phones within reach, and the lecture slides of a separate class on a tablet screen, all at the desk or seat of one student.
There is no denying how beneficial this ability can be. You can listen and pay attention to lectures while still being productive when the professor goes on off-topic tangents. Speaking from experience, this ability was not only crucial, but incredibly influential when it came to earning my B.A.S.
We have hands-free calling while driving, we listen to music while reading, we play games on our phones while going to the washroom, we wait for notifications from an important NHL game while we're at dinner, and we can be engaged in several different conversations at the same time. We can catch up with our parents while making plans for Friday night, and while we're grocery shopping....
The combinations and examples are endless.
It is very clear - multitasking is considered to be a common trait nowadays, and it seems to be an expected ability in our society.
But what are the downfalls of multitasking?
No, there may not be many, but the few downfalls are actually worth noting. I think that the negative impacts of too much multitasking can actually hinder our lives on various levels.
We all know what it feels like to be telling a story or answering a question for someone when that person is CLEARLY preoccupied - either in thought or activity. I am guessing that it has happened to each of us, but worse, I absolutely guarantee that each and every one of us has done it to someone else (probably several times). Sure - that text message response you have waited all day for may be the top priority in the running list in your mind, but how does it make the other person feel when you stop your interaction with him/her and JUMP after the phone.
There are always circumstances that absolutely REQUIRE immediate response - but wouldn't it feel more courteous if your company warned you about a potentially important phone call or message? How much better do you feel about someone answering the phone when he/she has told you beforehand about an expected phone call?
Even more than that, do you ever feel like your memory isn't all that great? Or do you ever notice when a friend can't remember details of a recent conversation? Multitasking CAN influence how efficient our memory is. If we are focusing on too many obstacles at one time, the memory is only partially stored, and has greater potential of being foggy... or forgotten entirely.
Even something as simple as writing these blog posts requires precise focus. I cannot fully concentrate until I have removed most outside distractions (like having Dex go lie down, turning off music or the television, even going so far as to stop all notifications on my phone or put it into airplane mode).
The biggest question is:
Are we allowing multitasking to negatively affect our relationships, friendships, progress, memory, or even productivity?
Don't we owe it to ourselves to take a few extra minutes to truly focus on exactly where we are and who we are presently interacting with?
Don't get me wrong - I love having a really great chat with someone over speakerphone or Facetime while I am cooking - but are we losing the depth and quality of our relationships trying to do everything at once?
I have recently decided to take a step backwards from technology. I signed up for a landline home phone, for the following reasons:
- If my phone dies or malfunctions while I am waiting to hear from a doctor's office (which is a daily routine), I want to have a second reliable contact number with voicemail available.
- Again, if my cell phone does not work, it is for safety reasons to have an additional working phone nearby.
- I wanted a landline designated for medical and emergency phone calls only.
- I want to be ABLE to ignore a phone call while I am interacting with someone else, even if it is an important call (even from an unknown number), and not stress over who it was, what they wanted, and (subsequently) becoming preoccupied.
- I do not want to always feel frantic about answering my phone to catch a doctor's phone call - at the expense of whichever friend is in my company.
With so much emphasis being placed on achieving several different things at the same time, how do we learn to focus all of our attention onto ONE thing?
Negative effects of the 'ability' to multitask can also influence physical health. A restless mind can make it impossible to sleep, and doing too many things at once can cause undue stress (which, as we all know, can have detrimental effects on physical and emotional health).
My New Year's Resolution is coming early this year.
If I have company over, if I am engaged in a lengthy conversation through texting, a phone call, etc... Basically, if I am interacting with someone, I am vowing to do whatever I can to put all of my energy and focus into that one conversation... One person at a time.
Every person who is in my life is important... And I want to get back to a state where my friends actually FEEL like a priority, instead of second or third or fourth - to another individual texting me, to the score of a football game, even to a game on my iPhone.
We all know what it feels like to be visiting someone who isn't really paying attention. I am determined to reduce the amount of multitasking that I perform if it will make others feel less important. Also, while I am with friends, I want other friends to know that I will not answer text messages, emails, social network notifications, or the like - so if I need to be reached for an urgent matter or if someone requires my immediate response, I would prefer a phone call.
It all starts with me.
The more I concentrate my focus onto one person at a time, the more likely that that respect and that behavior will be reciprocated.
Everyone wants to feel like an important priority in the lives of our friends. Every one of us deserves to feel important to our friends.
Because really, if I ask someone a question and then answer a text message while my friend is explaining the answer to me, that's pretty disrespectful.
So I plan on changing that behavior, even in small steps. :)