Multitasking

I read an interesting article over at Lifehacker called Debunking the Myth of Multi-tasking. The idea is that when we multitask, we are not really doing two things at one time but rapidly switching between several tasks. The time to switch tasks add up and you become less productive.

I'm not so sure that I accept that multitasking is a bad thing. I think it has its time and place. I work in an office, and when I am running a large copy job, I could just sit there and twiddle my thumbs or watch the copy machine work, but I choose to do something else instead. As I boot my computer, I read the notes on my desk. But is what I describe really multitasking or technological delegation that frees me up to do something else? At home I multitask too. For instance, I empty the dishwasher while I wait for water to boil. Productivity is about making the small moments count.

I believe that if you can effectively manage your time, switchtasking can be a part of your routine too. I am an office clerk, so if somebody comes in with a question, there I am. If the phone rings, I need to answer it. Throughout the day, I rapidly switch between tasks. However, I think you can manage constant interruptions and still get things done by the use of detailed checklists. This falls more in line with David Allen's Getting Things Done theory, and it works for me. I have a daily checklist of things I need to do each day, and I have a list of tasks as well. I have also found a tickler file quite handy, but I took it a step further and indexed it. I have a spreadsheet printed out of the year and what each month's tickler file folder contains and upcoming events.

By the way, I wrote a book review of Getting Things Done over at my other site, UniversalBookReviews.