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Multitasking hurts performance and may even damage the brain (2018)

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Re: Multitasking hurts performance and may even damage the brain (2018)

#251

Post by shoto_io »

croo wrote: post #250
shoto_io wrote: post #222

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have some practical question: - Is sitting in a meeting, listening and taking notes multi-tasking? - Is listening to a podcast while jogging multi-tasking? - Cooking and talking to friends on the phone?

Multitasking is more like beeing in two meeting simultaneously and taking notes on both, writing a functional specification for a project while talking to your spouse about the weekly shopping list, talking with your coworker about a problem in a codebase while you work in _another_ codebase, trying to fix a production server while watching for cars on the road your kids are playing...

Thanks, that is helpful.

I wonder if it can be defined through System 1 and 2 activities. So doing a System 1 task + System 2 task simultaneously would be ok, but not doing System 1 task + another System 1 task.

Re: Multitasking hurts performance and may even damage the brain (2018)

#252

Post by Aeolun »

shoto_io wrote: post #222
shakaijin wrote: post #177

I have been noticing the impact of excessive multitasking on myself lately, and I am now actively trying to avoid it. At first i thought that multitasking would increase my overall efficiency by filling in gaps of downtime in certain tasks, but it soon turned me into a person incapable of focusing on anything deeply. One day, I noticed that I am unable to read a book the same way i did as a child (cover to cover in o…

I have some practical question: - Is sitting in a meeting, listening and taking notes multi-tasking? - Is listening to a podcast while jogging multi-tasking? - Cooking and talking to friends on the phone?

I think you can generally do one physical thing on autopilot while still doing one mental task. Doing two mental or physical tasks at the same time is where it gets tricky.

Re: Multitasking hurts performance and may even damage the brain (2018)

#253

Post by arichard123 »

How do I know when I am multitasking? If I am cooking a meal, and that meal has several items on the go at once, am I multitasking? What if I have a complicated coding problem with multiple requirements which I have to consider, perhaps with political implications, so that I'm switching my thinking from a technical viewpoint, to a user experience viewpoint, to a "what will the leadership think" viewpoint? Is that multitasking?

Re: Multitasking hurts performance and may even damage the brain (2018)

#254

Post by Aeolun »

andrewstuart wrote: post #11

My primary school age son, and anecdotally, lots of other kids of similar age, relentlessly multitask in ways that hurts my brain just to think about. He literally is playing a game, watching a YouTube video in another screen, and talking to friends at the same time, and in the most extreme case, is even listening to an audiobook or podcast as well. Asking kids about it, they all say that's just what they do and look…

I’ve seen my youngest sibling do this and I agree it breaks my brain. Can’t imagine you get anything done like that.

Re: Multitasking hurts performance and may even damage the brain (2018)

#255

Post by KineticLensman »

sdeframond wrote: post #241
shoto_io wrote: post #222

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have some practical question: - Is sitting in a meeting, listening and taking notes multi-tasking? - Is listening to a podcast while jogging multi-tasking? - Cooking and talking to friends on the phone?

As for jogging, I think it depends on your goals but I generally wouldn't recommend listening to music or podcasts. Instead, try to focus on yourself, your sensations, the smoothness/effectivness of your stride, cadence and so on. There is actually plenty to keep your brain busy. It will help prevent injuries and make you a better runner.

I find the same while driving on motorways. Music is okay, but news / talk radio can sometimes distract me from what is going on and I lose situational awareness. Phone calls are right out.

Re: Multitasking hurts performance and may even damage the brain (2018)

#256

Post by hnick »

krono wrote: post #238
hnick wrote: post #185

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I am late 30s and do that. I think it is a learned dysfunction / habit / stimulatory addiction. Just last night my wife asked how I can play a game (Path of Exile) and watch YouTube on my other screen. It was a little hard to explain but I mentioned I tend to watch videos I don't really need to look at (in this case it was just the relaxing tones of LockPickingLawyer) and I was kind of playing in a flow state in PoE…

If this behaviour is problematic for you, it might not be a bad idea to get yourself tested for ADHD. Even more so for @andrewstuart his son. I can only imagine what I could have achieved with early diagnosis and treatment.

Yeah, I've considered it but the last year meant I pretty much avoided leaving the house. Maybe it's time to look at it again. My sister and mum (in her 60s) got diagnosed recently.

Re: Multitasking hurts performance and may even damage the brain (2018)

#257

Post by kgran »

tcoff91 wrote: post #224
shakaijin wrote: post #202

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My current approach is probably dumb, but the main thing I am trying to eliminate is me unconsciously accessing distractions (Reddit, YouTube etc.). I have basically conditioned myself to always go to such sites, and my body just opens them, even when trying to focus on some task, without it being a conscious decision. I have partially solved this by blocking all distractions I usually go to with my DNS (PiHole), so…

Try to practice a ritual like writing the names of websites down and then throwing the piece of paper into the trash. I find that it helps to interrupt the mindless opening of the distracting sites. It gives me a brief moment as I'm opening the distraction where I remember that I chose to sacrifice this thing, and I bail out. This requires regular practice of whatever ritual you create.

Write the names on dollar bills and you're fixed.

Re: Multitasking hurts performance and may even damage the brain (2018)

#258

Post by toopok4k3 »

arichard123 wrote: post #253

How do I know when I am multitasking? If I am cooking a meal, and that meal has several items on the go at once, am I multitasking? What if I have a complicated coding problem with multiple requirements which I have to consider, perhaps with political implications, so that I'm switching my thinking from a technical viewpoint, to a user experience viewpoint, to a "what will the leadership think" viewpoint? Is that mul…

Is the meal you are cooking a new recipe to you? You gotta plan and do things slower don't you? If it's something you know how to do, you don't really use brainpower on the serialization of when to do what, but experience. Good and fast cooking is all about serializing tasks, not doing multiple things at the same time.

My breakfast routines are routines, If I start to mix up my routine, egg, bread and coffee timings are all screwed up. I overcook the egg, coffee is late. I have noticed timing and serializing tasks is everything when cooking anything. I think this is where the french(?) mise en place comes from, prepare every ingredient before hand, so when you have multiple stoves going on, ingredients are ready and you can focus on time critical stuff.

Re: Multitasking hurts performance and may even damage the brain (2018)

#259

Post by YinglingLight »

LeftHandPath wrote: post #200
shakaijin wrote: post #177

I have been noticing the impact of excessive multitasking on myself lately, and I am now actively trying to avoid it. At first i thought that multitasking would increase my overall efficiency by filling in gaps of downtime in certain tasks, but it soon turned me into a person incapable of focusing on anything deeply. One day, I noticed that I am unable to read a book the same way i did as a child (cover to cover in o…

I have noticed it as well, but I haven't gotten to the point of doing anything about it yet. If I'm playing a video game, I have to be listening to a podcast. If I'm reading a book, I have to check the news every few minutes. If I'm writing code, I have to turn on some sort of background noise. The only times I'm productive are when I, by some accident, get past the initial discomfort of doing only one thing, and get…

No music is inherently far more difficult than No fap, No pillow, No social media. We flood our dopamine receptors daily and without remorse.
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