Episode 145
145. Multitasking Makes You STOOPID - Do THIS Instead
Think you're great at multitasking? Think again.
What if I told you that every extra task you take on makes you less effective and even lowers the quality of your work?
In this episode, we bust the myth of multitaskin.g. At the level of neurophysiology, your brain can't do more than one thing at a time. Instead, you'll discover a simple technique you can use in your Physician Leadership role that helps you stay focused, maximize efficiency, and actually feel more at peace—no more scattered thinking or half-finished tasks.
You Will Discover:
👉🏼 Why multitasking is an illusion and how it actually slows you down.
👉🏼 The "pearl necklace" technique to stay focused and productive through Sequential Monotasking.
👉🏼 How to implement a simple, actionable strategy to improve your workflow and reduce stress.
LISTEN NOW to stop sabotaging your productivity—tune in now to master the technique that will help you work smarter, not harder!
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Transcript
Quick question.
Speaker A:Do you think you're pretty good at multitasking?
Speaker A:You can do two or three things at once.
Speaker A:In this episode, you'll discover why that's not true.
Speaker A:Multitasking is not possible at the level of neurophysiology, and any extra task you add to the one you're doing makes you stupid.
Speaker A:Let me show you what to do instead.
Speaker A:Give up multitasking.
Speaker A:Do this instead with a technique called the pearl necklace.
Speaker A:Check it out.
Speaker A:Hello and welcome to the latest episode of the Stop Physician Burnout podcast, a physician leadership podcast where you will learn the skills so that we can join together and lead the charge to physician well being.
Speaker A:Skills to earn the respect of your colleagues in the front lines.
Speaker A:Skills to exercise true influence in the C suite and take back your job, your practice, your career, and your life skill.
Speaker A:All of these tools have been proven effective in my 40,000 doctor physician coaching and training practice.
Speaker A:And if I know one thing, I know you're super busy.
Speaker A:So let's get started.
Speaker A:In this episode, you'll discover how to give up the pipe dream of the ability to multitask.
Speaker A:You can't.
Speaker A:Nobody can.
Speaker A:It's impossible physiologically.
Speaker A:And let me show you a technique that maintains your train of thought, keeps you maximally efficient on a day when you have six or eight things that must be accomplished, and actually helps you feel more peaceful about the whole process and do much better work than if you try to do more than one thing at a time.
Speaker A:Check it out.
Speaker A:Dr.
Speaker A:Dyke Drummond here from our home in beautiful Seattle, Washington, with the latest edition of the Stop Physician Burnout podcast coming to you from our home base@the happymd.com on the web.
Speaker A:This is a really important lesson that brings up a lot of strong feelings for people.
Speaker A:When I'm in front of an audience of 200 doctors, I say raise your hand if you think you're good at multitasking.
Speaker A:And most of the hands will go up in the room.
Speaker A:And then I just have to wave my hand and say, nope, sorry, you're terrible.
Speaker A:Let me tell you why I say that and why it's actually true multitasking.
Speaker A:That's the illusion that you can do multiple things at once.
Speaker A:And on a neurophysiology basis, it's impossible.
Speaker A:Your brain cannot do two things at the same time.
Speaker A:What it can do is cycle back and forth rapidly between two or three different things, but it can't do them all at once.
Speaker A:And every time you switch from one channel to the next, there is a lag time and there is A reordering of your thought process.
Speaker A:That means you're much less effective, efficient.
Speaker A:The quality of your work is much lower if you're trying to do two or three things in rapid succession.
Speaker A:Multitasking is, is impossible at the level of the neural cells in your brain.
Speaker A:So give up that as an illusion.
Speaker A:Let me show you a better way.
Speaker A:The basic truth is that our attention is like a garden hose.
Speaker A:If we take the hose and we.
Speaker A:We aim all the water at a single plant, it gets all the water.
Speaker A:But if I take the hose and I put my finger across the opening so that I have two streams of water and I water two plants at once, each plant gets half the water.
Speaker A:So if I add a second task to the one I started with, I get half as good at either one.
Speaker A:If I was to dedicate myself to doing one at a time, does that make sense?
Speaker A:Now, you've all seen evidence of this.
Speaker A:When was the last time you were driving on the road and the car in front of you is weaving back and forth and you thought they were drunk?
Speaker A:It was a country road.
Speaker A:You got to the place where the lines let you cross to pass this person.
Speaker A:You didn't see any headlights, so you went ahead and put the foot to the floor to pass them.
Speaker A:And as you drove by and looked into their window, they weren't drunk, were they?
Speaker A:What were they doing?
Speaker A:They were multitasking on their cell phone.
Speaker A:And it made their driving way less than half of what it could have been.
Speaker A:So let me teach you a technique called the pearl necklace.
Speaker A:And the metaphor is a pearl necklace.
Speaker A:Let me ask you a couple questions about your knowledge about pearl necklaces.
Speaker A:Do you have one?
Speaker A:If you have a real pearl necklace, there's something between each of the pearls.
Speaker A:Do you know what that is?
Speaker A:And if somebody shows you what they claim is a pearl necklace without this between each pearl, it's not a pearl necklace, I promise you.
Speaker A:What's in between them?
Speaker A:It's a knot.
Speaker A:Why is that?
Speaker A:Well, if I have a string of so called pearls with no knots between them and I break the necklace, how many pearls end up on the floor?
Speaker A:All of them.
Speaker A:So you would never have real pearls on a necklace without knots.
Speaker A:If I have a real pearl necklace with knots between each one and I break it, how many pearls end up on the floor?
Speaker A:Just one.
Speaker A:But notice if you will, the pattern.
Speaker A:If you look at the string of purls, it goes purl knot, purl knot, purl knot.
Speaker A:So I'm going to challenge you the next time you have multiple tasks to do.
Speaker A:To write down a list.
Speaker A:List is always where you start.
Speaker A:Prioritize the list to decide in what order you're gonna do these tasks and then think of each task as a purl.
Speaker A:And in between each purl, there's a knot.
Speaker A:That knot is a breath, a big breath to clear yourself so you can focus on the next task 100%.
Speaker A:To clear your mind of the task that you just completed and to set yourself up to approach the task at hand.
Speaker A:Now, it may take more than one breath, but give yourself a space and a couple of breaths and consciously reorganize your thinking to focus all of your attention on the next task.
Speaker A:So it goes Pearl.
Speaker A:Do the activity.
Speaker A:Complete the checklist, write the letter, whatever it is.
Speaker A:As you set that aside, here comes the knot.
Speaker A:Big breath in and out.
Speaker A:Focus on the next task.
Speaker A:Maybe it is a phone call that you have to make.
Speaker A:Deliver all of your attention to that phone call and when you're done, go ahead and set it to the side.
Speaker A:And that was your Pearl, Put another knot in right now.
Speaker A:Big breath in to clear yourself and refocus on the next task.
Speaker A:So your task list becomes task, breath and refocus.
Speaker A:Task, breath and refocus.
Speaker A:Purl, knot, purl knot.
Speaker A:Take things on one at a time.
Speaker A:Another way to call it I like pearl necklace, but another way to name this, and I've used it before, is this is sequential monotasking.
Speaker B:Let's take 30 seconds to thank today's sponsor.
Speaker B:That would be my one on one coaching practice performance coaching for physician leaders like you.
Speaker B:I share my 40,000 Dr.
Speaker B:Coaching and training experience in two 90 minute calls a month, giving you tools that will allow you to exert influence in the C suite.
Speaker B:Represent your people to the administrative arm of the organization and create wellness for yourself and your teams and your entire organization.
Speaker B:It all starts with a free no obligation discovery session.
Speaker B:The link to book your session is down below in the show notes and I look forward to seeing you on a zoom call real soon.
Speaker A:Sequential monotasking.
Speaker A:By the way, teach this technique to all of your direct reports, especially the folks that support you in the office who have enormous tasks lists in the day.
Speaker A:And these office people, even more than doctors, are convinced that they can multitask too.
Speaker A:If you can get people to focus on one at a time and do a great job, you'll notice your productivity and effectiveness increase.
Speaker A:What's on your list today?
Speaker A:Knot.
Speaker A:Pearl, not pearl, not pearl necklace.
Speaker A:Sequential monotasking.
Speaker A:Go for it.
Speaker A:That's it for this edition of the Stop position Burnout podcast coming to you every week.
Speaker A:Just 10 minutes.
Speaker A:A single proven tool to increase your leadership skill, earn the trust of your team members and exert influence up the chain of command.
Speaker A:Everything comes from my 15 year 40,000 doctor coaching and training, practice, learn a tool, put it to use this week, and I guarantee you'll get results.
Speaker A:And until we're together in the next podcast, keep breathing.
Speaker A:Have a great rest of your day.
