This month has been interesting. I've done a lot of things out of my comfort zone in a short period of time which has been good but I've also had to change my work habits which turned out to be horrible. I was working from another home and alone most of the time so I found myself using technology more than ever to detrimental effect.
I have found that my switch from listening to music on my computer to listening on my ipod touch has been bad for my focus as I get facebook notifications and email notifications. The time it takes me to check the notification takes a few seconds, but the time it takes to get my brain back on track is a lot longer. A study conducted by Michigan State reported that a 3 second distraction doubles work related errors and I believe it.
I've also been doing a lot of unnecessary multitasking, such as checking facebook, writing, listening to music and checking the news all at the same time. I find the new gadgets make multitasking like this effortless and quick. It seems like the less time I spend focusing on one task the more "fuzzy" and overwhelmed my mind feels. Science seems to back this up.
Now I'm strangely trying to undo all of the extremely handy features that my phone has and removing all of my saved passwords on the computer so checking thing is no longer a "3 second" jump. I've always been a fan of the "Slow tech" and "unplugging" movements and have been good about getting things done in the real world, but this last week I was glued to my devices and I feel horrible.
I encourage everyone to try and take a break from crazy multitasking this week. There are a lot of beautiful things going on outdoors take the time to relax and enjoy them without checking your phone every two seconds.
9-8-2014
I have found that my switch from listening to music on my computer to listening on my ipod touch has been bad for my focus as I get facebook notifications and email notifications. The time it takes me to check the notification takes a few seconds, but the time it takes to get my brain back on track is a lot longer. A study conducted by Michigan State reported that a 3 second distraction doubles work related errors and I believe it.
I've also been doing a lot of unnecessary multitasking, such as checking facebook, writing, listening to music and checking the news all at the same time. I find the new gadgets make multitasking like this effortless and quick. It seems like the less time I spend focusing on one task the more "fuzzy" and overwhelmed my mind feels. Science seems to back this up.
Now I'm strangely trying to undo all of the extremely handy features that my phone has and removing all of my saved passwords on the computer so checking thing is no longer a "3 second" jump. I've always been a fan of the "Slow tech" and "unplugging" movements and have been good about getting things done in the real world, but this last week I was glued to my devices and I feel horrible.
I encourage everyone to try and take a break from crazy multitasking this week. There are a lot of beautiful things going on outdoors take the time to relax and enjoy them without checking your phone every two seconds.
9-8-2014