Up until the last few months, I had some pride in my ability to multi-task. I can attend a meeting and sort through emails at the same time. I can eat lunch and work on a presentation at the same time. --this is micro multi-tasking. Others play video games, watch TV and text their friends at the same time. Still others will go out to dinner with a friend and keep their cell phone prominently in site in case an opportunity to micro multi-task arises. Perhaps a Facebook post or an incoming tweet. Micro multitasking is what we think we do, but it is an illusion. Micro multitasking prevents us from truly enjoying any single activity. It prevents us from devoting ourselves to anything. It simply creates noise, friction and unnecessary complexity to our lives.
Macro multi-tasking is something that we can all do and benefit from. Macro multi-tasking is when we devote long periods of time to a single endeavor, before moving on to something else. Becoming an expert in that endeavor. For example, we can devote our early childhood to learning a second language, say, from ages 3 to 7. Then we can devote the next several years to learning to play the piano, say from ages 8 to 15. At age 16 we could take up golf and focus on the that for next 5 or 6 years, say to age 20. At age 20 we can focus on computer programming and become an expert in that area in about 5 year. By age 25, we are fluent in 2 languages, can play piano concertos, play semi-pro golf and be a professional software programmer.
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April 2018
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AuthorKen Schmidt |