Remember Single Tasking? Probably Not!

The mobile technology revolution has completely eliminated the single tasking we remember from many of our pre-Palm and pre-Blackberry days. I never want to go back to that time, but rather adjust our life — and more importantly — our brain.

Before I get into single tasking, here are facts from people much smarter than me. (Don't believe me? Google it!) Multitasking decreases your productivity by 40%, lowers your IQ by 17% and shrinks your brain by reducing density in area that controls cognitive and emotional control.

Please re-read this section and think about yourself. I did while writing this — scary, huh?

7 Actions You Can Take Right Now

So what is our plan to keep our brain from shrinking, be dumber and raise our productivity? I personally practice single tasking in spurts, and will share how in my next article. In the meantime, try these actionable steps:

• Acknowledge the fact multitasking is a bad thing, and decide it's time to take your life back.
• Teach yourself one task at a time.
• Try to stop daydreaming or letting your thoughts wander from the task at hand.
• Find a work environment free of distractions (we will discuss this point in a later article).
• Once in a while give. your brain a break. Find a place to reflect on your thoughts.
• Quickly learn to say No when folks push you to do something that gobbles up your time.
• Involve family and co-workers to help you stay on task.

I know most of you are REALTORS® and will quickly argue multitasking is part of doing business. I will partially agree — but let's find a way to turn it off and on as needed to be successful.

Personal note: After I finished writing this article and before I did my proofread, I checked my computer and phone. I answered three emails, responded to two text messages, and read a few news and weather alerts. Oh, I need help, too!

Dick Betts is a national speaker, trainer and consultant. Learn more at www.DickBetts.com