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In a world where everything is moving incredibly fast, competition has increased in all fields, and most of us are busy. Many times, we have to do several things at the same time. Looking at our lives and those around us, we can easily conclude that multitasking skills are necessary to achieve success, develop skills, and complete tasks on time. Of course, there are opposing opinions in this field, and some people believe that if we get used to multitasking in our work life, we will experience burnout, and our concentration and productivity will decrease. In this article, we will discuss what multitasking skill is and its advantages and disadvantages to determine whether multitasking is good or bad?!

What is a single task and multitasking, and what is the difference?

Multitasking, in simple words, means being able to carry out several tasks and projects at the same time. Multitasking is the opposite of single-tasking. Just as some people can multitask (for example, a writer who writes articles, answers work emails, and listens to language learning podcasts), some can only focus on one task, and if they want to do several things together, everything will be messed up, and they will be confused.

In response to the skill of multitasking, we said that it means doing several things simultaneously, But is it possible to do several things simultaneously? When we say simultaneously, we suggest dividing the time and carrying out several tasks by doing and switching; Otherwise, our brain can only focus on one subject at a time and no more.

What are the Advantages of multitasking? To see if multitasking is excellent and valuable, it does more harm than good. First, we will check the advantages of multitasking skills, and then discuss its disadvantages. First, let’s say that almost all of us multitask unconsciously during the day. For example, while watching a movie, we eat, listen to music, etc., but when discussing multitasking, we often mean more complex tasks, not simple everyday tasks. Now let’s see what are the advantages of multitasking.

The most apparent advantage of multitasking is that it often makes us move faster and be more successful in completing our projects. It is Something that employers like very much and is considered a bonus. Over time, our mind learns to move from one task to another quickly and not lock, of course, on the condition that we do not exaggerate in multitasking! If we use multitasking skills properly, we can increase production and services and save time and money. This makes us feel good and valuable. In many situations in society, the workplace, and the family, we have been taught that doing a lot of work simultaneously means empowerment and value. So that we may feel disappointed and disappointed if we cannot multitask.

What are the Disadvantages of multitasking?

As we have reviewed, multitasking has advantages. It can be considered your strong point. But like many other situations where we get the opposite result of what we wanted, in multitasking, if we exaggerate, the disadvantages line up in front of us, one by one! What are the disadvantages of multitasking skills, and what problems can they cause?

The biggest problem is that multitasking can cause mental jumps. It must have happened to you that you are concentrating on doing Something, and suddenly, one of your colleagues calls you. You answer it, but what happens? You lose focus, you start to wander, you may forget what you were doing, and it takes at least a few seconds to get back to what you were doing. When you jump from one task to another and multitask, this happens to your mind, and you have to pay the price of moving.

 

What if we overdo multitasking?

Mental jump is one of the most common problems of multitasking, But multitasking has other disadvantages, which include:

• Reduced concentration
• Increased distraction
• Reducing efficiency and productivity
• Increased probability of error
• Decreased creativity
• Increased stress and anxiety
• Inability to do deep work
• Adverse effects on short-term memory

After all, should we multitask or not?

So far, we have explained what multitasking skill is, and we have examined its advantages and disadvantages. You are probably asking, is multitasking good or bad? Should we strengthen this skill in ourselves or not? Indeed, despite the problems that multitasking may cause, we are often forced to multitask and push several tasks forward simultaneously, primarily if we work in startup environments. There is nothing wrong if we do not overdo it. Therefore, all of us must improve our skills in the field of multitasking, But two points should not be forgotten:

• Don’t do several important things at the same time.
• Preferably, focus on similar tasks and tasks to increase speed and productivity.

 

 

 

How do you improve your multitasking skills?

Before we talk about improving multitasking skills, let’s say that you should not make multitasking a habit as much as possible so that the quality of your work does not decrease. Don’t forget that being addicted to multitasking will knock you down very soon. In any case, multitasking can help us a lot, and sometimes we have no choice but to multitask. In such cases, to reduce the disadvantages of multitasking and be able to carry out your work in the best way, you must follow a series of tips. What are the ways to improve multitasking skills, and how should we improve it? According to the following points:

Take planning seriously

If your job and your position in the company are such that you must multitask most of the time, you must plan and prioritize your work. Having a plan is always essential. However, planning increases when you do several things simultaneously; planning organizes your job, increases the accuracy and speed of doing things, and reduces stress. So, if you know, for example, that you will carry out several projects together tomorrow, be sure to list your tasks today, plan for the charges, and prioritize the tasks. In some jobs, such as programming, planning will be more critical. ; Therefore, the guide to success in the career path of programming and other assignments is to pay special attention to planning.

• What is programming? who is programmer?

Focus on similar tasks instead of unrelated activities.

If you know the skill of multitasking and want to do several things simultaneously, try to do similar and related items together. Why? If the tasks are too unrelated and without common points, you will lose a lot of concentration and time, your mind will be confused, and your productivity will decrease. Such problems arise when you feed your short-term memory too much-varied information. So, if you go for multitasking, to avoid these problems, the best thing is to choose tasks related to each other. You can quickly move from one job to another by selecting similar studies.

 

Remove distractions

Distraction means losing focus and time and, as a result, procrastinating. Currently, there are many distractions. For example, many of us have the wrong habit of constantly checking social networks or checking our email in the middle of our work, etc. If we often don’t go to the distractions ourselves, others will distract us. For example, our colleague keeps calling us during our career, talking loudly, or our phone rings, etc. So, in response to the best way to improve multitasking skills, we must eliminate distractions as much as possible. Before you start your work, remove all the things that distract you. For example, don’t leave the phone in your hand and don’t go to it for an hour, silence the phone, ask the people around you not to call you if they don’t have an obligatory job, and…

Do not work without rest.

Multitasking and carrying out several tasks simultaneously is challenging and makes the mind tired. Therefore, if you continue to multitask without rest, your energy level will decrease very soon, and your efficiency will decrease. In this case, after a while, you will not be able to carry out several tasks simultaneously, and you will not even have enough concentration to do one job, and your mind and body will be tired. What should be done? During the day, you must have short breaks between your homework so that your mind can relax. In addition, if you have spent a few intensive months and you have been under pressure with multitasking, it is necessary to take a few days off and do activities that will re-energize you. For example, go on a trip of two to three days.

Delegate some tasks

Regarding the methods of strengthening multitasking skills, we must say that some people, especially managers, think that if they delegate Something and leave it to someone else, they are incapable and feel inadequate. Some people have this destructive habit of doing everything themselves, no matter what and in any situation. If you can prioritize tasks and, if possible, delegate work to your team and colleagues, that’s a skill in itself. Sometimes, delegating tasks gives you enough time to to focus and move on to more critical studies. If you also have the same thinking that you should only do things yourself, put aside this wrong thought and divide the work correctly so that you can do more things and strengthen your multitasking skills.

 

Check and review tasks.

When you’re multitasking, you should check the progress every few hours throughout the day to ensure everything goes according to plan and make the necessary corrections if Something goes wrong. Some project management software, such as Trello and Asana, can significantly help you in this context. In addition, at the end of the day, when the work is done, it is better to review the work Because when you carry out several tasks simultaneously and multitask, the possibility of errors increases. So when you check and recheck, you won’t miss work mistakes and have time to correct and compensate before it’s too late. If you have been trained in summary writing, you can review and report your activities faster and more accurately.

Conclusion

In this article, we have thoroughly explained what multitasking skill is and explained the most essential points about multitasking. Sometimes, it is necessary to multitask to move things forward and achieve goals quickly, But you should not make multitasking a regular habit and put pressure on yourself. Please pay attention to the fact that people’s abilities are different. With the techniques we said, and with practice and repetition, try to strengthen and improve your multitasking skills; but when your mind is tired and you can’t multitask, don’t blame yourself, and don’t be disappointed.