Logical Alternative to Multi-tasking — Single-Tasking

What used to be said with pride, “I can do three things at once — I multi-task”, now seems like a fraud.

The simple fact is that you can only do one thing well at a time and other than actions controlled by the central nervous system or muscle memory like turning on the car blinker  when you get ready to make a turn or jumping rope, all actions need some level of concentration.

Hence the way to concentrate at work is to single-task.  This white-board is making the rounds.  I got it from marketing nirvana who got it from caterina.net.

The methodology this person developed for doing one thing at a time allows you to:

• send email at any time, but only check it a few times a day on schedule.

• Focus on only 1 to 3 activities a day.

• Minimize chat, which I guess means with co-workers and online (which would include Twitter).

I personally don’t see much hope in trying to be finished at 5:30 pm every day (unless I start at 5:30 am).

Here’s a refinement of the methodology.  Tell us what you think.