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Is Multitasking a Waste of Time?

Multitasking is a popular buzzword among managers these days and refers to the ability to do a number of tasks simultaneously .

But scientific studies in multitasking show that carrying on several duties at once may reduce productivity , not increase it. They found that for various types of tasks, subjects lost time when they had to switch from one task to another. These "time costs" increased with the complexity of the chores: it took longer for subjects to switch between more complicated tasks.

In today's work environment, people are forced to switch between tasks all the time: What are

you doing right now as you read this article? Ordering supplies for the office over the phone? Monitoring a screen for production performance? Sending an e-mail to a colleague? Carrying on Instant Message conversations with three co-workers? Writing up a report for the meeting on Wednesday? Eating the lunch you never have time to leave the desk for? Opening and reading traditional mail? Making a list of the clients you have to call today? Not being able to concentrate on any one thing may actually be costing your company as much as 20-40% in potential efficiency losses!

And multitasking can even be potentially dangerous, such as when driving while

talking on a cell phone, maybe making business calls while trying to get to your next meeting. Many people think phoning while driving is no big deal, especially with hands-free phones and voice-activated dialing. But when you're driving you need to be looking around you, reading signs, making decisions about where to go with your car. This is impossible to do while on the cell phone because you have to use your 'inner voice' and even your 'inner eyes' to imagine what the person on the phone is talking about.

The important thing is to know your limitations . Maybe your mother was right when she said: "I've only got one pair of hands!"

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