As a very busy working woman, I am often asked, “how do you do it all?” Well there are many things are do to make things easier but one thing I try not to do anymore is multi-task.

For many working moms, we are often forced to do more than one task at a time. Many of us can relate to trying to soothe a crying baby while finishing an important assignment. I still remember the day I fell asleep while breastfeeding my baby, I was exhausted!

I used to pride myself on being a great multi-tasker until I saw it was doing more harm than good! How so? Well, for one, it meant it took longer to finish certain tasks or that the tasks, though completed, weren’t as thoroughly done as they could be.

Yep, many times efficiency, effectiveness and follow through are sacrificed in the name of multi tasking. While in this busy and VUCA world, the concept of doing more in less time seems very appealing, the truth is that only 2.5% of the world’s population may possess this unique skill. Indeed, I just discovered that the term ‘multitasking’ was coined by IBM in the 1960s, as a function of its computers. The human brain, though highly functional, does not function at its best when handling multiple tasks simultaneously. When we try to force it to operate functionally, it could lead to mental stress, decreased focus, and increased forgetfulness.

Personally, I have found that when I am doing too many things at the same time, I find myself tired, stressed, with several uncompleted tasks staring me in the face. However, when I take time to properly plan , outline, and attend to my tasks one by one, I achieve much more!

Think about , can you really give someone your full attention when you are reading a simple email, or do justice to that report while scrolling through LinkedIn? How many of us have taken the wrong turn while driving because we were engrossed in a phone call?

So take this as friendly advice from me: multitask way less and achieve much more!

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