MULTI-TASKING? NOT!

Stop Doing More Than One Thing at Once

Where does the myth of multi-tasking start? According to family research reported by the Kaiser Family Foundation, it appears to start as early as age 8. When children tell their parents they are doing homework, researchers found that they were doing several tasks at once including homework, instant messaging (or talking on the phone), watching TV or listening to music. They may also be eating their dinner, gaming, filling in their social calendar or entertaining a friend. When kids are engaged on the computer, they are also doing something else 55% of the time.

According to learning research, people learn by making associations with pre-existing patterns. These patterns help us respond quickly in emergency situations or in the case of athletics, patterns allow for quick responses in game situations. If the brain is attempting to absorb too many inputs at once, old patterns are not enhanced and as a result, no new learning occurs or it is temporary at best.

Complex tasks cannot be completed if the person is trying to accomplish more than one task. This is the reason why driving while talking on a cell phone is so dangerous. Driving a car is a complex task. Conversations can easily distract the driver lengthening the response time in case of emergency. The only way a person could be capable in both tasks would be to practice every day responding to emergency situations while talking on the phone.

Some of the reasons for the proliferation of multi-tasking are that people feel self-conscious at work if they don’t appear to be very busy. This notion is even parodied in commercials where the person at work is shown doing several Herculean tasks at once. Another reason is the depiction of TV characters shown doing many things at once and when people see this fantasy, they believe this is normal.

Multi-tasking is counter-productive and a significant time waster. If you want to feel more productive and have more time, focus on one task at a time. When that task hits “a wall”, move on to another task, as long as you can keep your focus on the new objective.

Simple tasks that have been practiced and learned through repetition can be done simultaneously. For example, it is possible to tie your shoes while talking with a friend or cooking a meal while listening to your child’s recap of their day at school (that does not mean you can help them with homework while making rice!).

A final thought: How awful it must be for adults with ADD to be forced to multi-task. Even for those of us not working with this handicap, multi-tasking is futile. For people with ADD, it must be overwhelming.

Two More Thoughts

~~ According to the Association of American Medical Colleges, medical school applications dropped from 46,965 in 1996 to 39,109 in 2006. This is bad news for America as doctors are already in short supply. With physician retirements coupled with the medical needs of older population, over the next 10 years the lack of physicians will rise to critical levels.

This presents an interesting dilemma for medical schools: do they lower standards to allow more American students to attend or admit more qualified foreign students who may not stay in the US to practice medicine? The only employment America is importing belongs to nursing and “stealing” other countries healthcare professionals, mired in short supply, is another image problem for the US.

Another issue with the American medical education system is since schools only take the best of the best, many graduates prefer to continue their education and gain certification in higher paying specialty areas. Communities don’t need as many specialists as they do primary care physicians.

Maybe an answer to America’s medical need is a two-tiered medical education system that allows more students to be admitted. The majority would graduate after 4 years and become primary providers. The top students would move on to specialty training. Already in place is the physician assistant’s program; perhaps that area of education could be broadened to create primary care physicians?

~~ “Expectations based on the past are the tombstones of the future.” – William V. Jones

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