Does Multitasking Work for You?
Nowadays, when we are so busy, what do you think about multitasking? Scientists found out that multitasking creates dependency. People who live performing many tasks at once, they have a dependence on it. This addiction associated with the production of dopamine. What is the dopamine? The neurotransmitter, which participates in many brain functions, is found when people are multitasking. They feel empowered and essential because they can perform many duties at one time. Anyway, dopamine, besides being a hormone of happiness and contentment, creates dependency.
Consequences for Multitasking
Scientists found out with rats (sick animals) that controlling an area of the brain, where dopamine is released, rats liked this sense of pleasure so much. They forgot to eat, did not pay attention to partners, and on end, they died from hunger and exhaustion. We can not compare people with rats, but how many finished their lives with overdoses of drugs and alcohol?
Bring off One Job
Performing a few jobs at once; it does not improve your mind at all. Glenn Daniel Wilson, the psychologist from Canterbury University, states that multitasking does more harm compare with marihuana. The damage did to these areas of the brain, where information transmitted from short memory to significant saving. People waste energy on small things. They do not concentrate fully. Multitasking causes the production of stress hormones, such as adrenaline and cortisol. The reason why our thinking and perception of things can be chaotic leads to multitasking. It does not sound appealing, does it?
Benefits of One Job
When we perform many tasks at once, we stimulate different areas of the brain. These parts, which are responsible for creativity, analysis, remain untouched. We usually rush, feel exhausted, and for what? Most of these tasks can wait until the next day. Smart planning can help to find the way from these situations. People who multitask can not enjoy a state of calmness. As the drug addict, who waits for the next portion of dose, people do not know how to benefit from vacation and a peaceful environment.
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Hello, I got information from this blog. I have this problem for myself. Thank you.
Thanks for visiting, regards.
I like to be focused on one thing at a time but it’s so hard to do that in this world where so many things are going on. Some people believe they work better multitasking but I know it can’t be true. We already can’t use a lot of our brain so trying to divide our attention will only take away from each of the things we’re doing.
Hello Gina, you are right. We can not think at the same time about two tasks. Something in our heads takes over and is dominating. Besides it, if we do not concentrate to one thing, we waste our time and energy to additional details, which are not so much important. One thing at the time is a best strategy. It is effective and time proven technique.
All the best, Nemira.
Funnily enough I read a peice on this about 3 weeks ago regarding multitasking actually making you dumber! Several scientific studies around the world have concluded the brain doesn’t switch tasks like an expert juggler. Quite the opposite – it can actually cause your IQ to reduce slightly. Have you heard of this?
Hello, Chris,yes, you are right because when at the same time in our brain happen a lot of connections between neurons, it can be as overheating and the short break in circuits. We need to do one step at the time and in a way that we do not return back to fix it.
The meditation helps us concentrate. This technique keeps us in the best shape. I read similar articles about the harm of multitasking. When people complete many tasks at the time, they lose the ability to perform in the best manner. What is more that when we focus on the one point, we complete the task in the best way as possible.
All the best, Nemira.
Thank you so much for the great article it is a eye opener on multitasking. I believe it is better to complete one task then have ten half way done. I love how you mention to it isn’t good for your health either. That way people get a heads up.
Hello, Tim, how are you? Thanks for comment. I appreciate it. I think that the meditation is the best cure for multitasking. We can concentrate better and see all details. Without calming the mind we just rush. The quantity takes over quality. I think that reverse effect would serve better for us. The quality is first. All the best, Nemira.
You know what, I just wrote about something related to this recently. I was writing about how if you work online at home you face a constant uphill battle against distractions. When we are connected to the internet, we have everything at our fingertips. We have access to instant entertainment.
I had read before that it was related to dopamine. This is why people like to hear the beep on their smartphone when a new email or Facebook notification comes through. We get a release of dopamine when that happens. But it is so important to try to break the cycle of constantly switching between different things. It’s much better to focus on one thing at a time. Thanks for writing this.
Hello, Marcus, thanks for input. I guess that people prefer pleasure over hard work. The pleasure gives us instant satisfaction; the hard work takes time. Results show up later. It is not easy to build character and develop valuable habits but it pays off sooner or later. Regards, Nemira.
I catch myself time to time that I jump from one job to another although I’m teaching myself to calm down and trying to put my attention on one thing at a time.
This experiment with rats that you talked about is kind of scary because it’s so true. Why then so many people become workaholics, or cannot relieve stress even after work. I guess because we get so many tasks it seems we cannot make them without multitasking. Just recently I had this kind of job and it wasn’t good at all.
Hi, Jolita, neuroscientists found out recently that multitasking affects brain in a bad way. The multitasking drains energy reserves of brain.It uses oxygenated glucose in the brain. The switching comes with a biological cost and makes us tired more quickly, says Daniel Levitin, professor of behavioral neuroscience at McGill University. We need take breaks. Coffee does not help in this case. It is advisable to take 15 minutes every two hours. It makes us more productive.
Hal Pashler, psychology professor at San Diego university points that if we do something on autopilot, such as house shores, it does not drain so much when we read a book at the same time. When we have two or three challenging tasks at the same time, it does harm for us.Our productivity goes down.
Gloria Mark, professor in the department of informatics at the University of California, found out that after frequent interruption people often develop short attention span.
The solution is to put tasks in a separate chunks and perform them one by one as the separate activity.
There are some programs which work as timers. You can schedule time break and after couple hours the message will show up on the computers screen. Time for break.
I wish that you would have the freedom for yourself to do what you want to do at the time which is the best to you. Cheers, Nemira.