The ability to multitask is often considered a good thing, but it causes stress and can change the structure of our brains. For those of you who are watching TV while reading this article, we suggest you turn it off!
"Multitasking" is considered a life skill, even advertised on CVs as one of the working conditions, but it is not so healthy.
Yes, you can perform tasks together; you can get them done very quickly, but once they start to overlap, things go wrong.
Why do we feel the need to do several things at once?
In our "more is better" culture, we've created the impression that being able to do a large amount of things is something to be admired. This negatively affects our productivity.
We are not as focused and information comes in more slowly, so we are more likely to make mistakes. This may mean that we will not understand correctly or we will miss important information that comes to us.
People who do several things at once are easily distracted. A study by the American Psychological Association found that this can slow productivity by up to 40%. Although we can write "skilled at multitasking" on the CV, it can hurt the chances of success on the job.
Most of us are built to do one thing at a time. So when we force ourselves to take in more, there are negative consequences. The fatigue of doing several things at the same time makes us more stressed and anxious. It can affect our memory. When our brains are constantly shifting focus, we process information at a superficial level and thus the ability to remember details and facts diminishes. As a result, the memory is damaged.
What happens in your brain:
1 . The level of cortisol (stress hormone) increases.
When tasks increase, we feel overwhelmed and anxiety and mental fatigue occur.
2. The structure of the brain can change.
3. Attention decreases
While we are multitasking, attention shifts between different tasks. This affects our attention and makes it more difficult for the brain to focus again on another task after switching focus. As a result, we become more distracted and our attention span weakens.
4. Productivity decreases
Our focus is scattered and this affects productivity levels and the chances of achieving the end goal.
5. The quality of work deteriorates
When the brain tries to process different information, it is more difficult to focus on something specific.
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