Multi-tasking not only doesn't work, it can lead to rude and unforgivable behavior, and in some cases, less productivity. I was observing a meeting recently where I saw this very thing take place. And if I was the boss in charge, I'd have second thoughts about the people whose multi-tasking behavior was so atrocious.

The meeting was organized by the manager of a company division. She rented a room in a convention center, catered lunch and took time out of her busy schedule to update everyone on business. She felt the meeting was so important, she wanted to give the staff her full attention and respond to questions in person-instead of sending out a memo.

Most of those in attendance were alert and polite. But too many people were distracted every few minutes with cell phones. Most left the room to take their calls. A few actually stayed and held conversations while the meeting was going on.

Two people fell asleep sitting up. The most unforgivable was the employee who asked the manager a question, then took a call on his cell phone. While the manager was giving an eloquent response to his question, he stood in the back of the room talking on his phone, looking up at his boss every few seconds.

Some people would excuse this behavior by saying he was merely multi-tasking-and dealing with some important business. That's a good thing, isn't it? Malarkey. Instead, he did two things badly at the same time:

1. Attend an important meeting and not pay attention.
2. Hold a phone conversation that he was distracted from because he was trying to listen to his boss at the same time.

I don't know who came up with the idea that doing more than one thing at a time is good. It's not. Not to mention that it can't be done.

Last year the American Psychological Association released a study by the University of Michigan saying multi-tasking carries a hidden cost in time and efficiency. Productivity actually goes down when you try to do several things at the same time.

In another study, Marcel Just of Carnegie Mellon University, put 18 volunteers into a brain imaging machine to see how their brain handled several tasks at once. In an interview on National Public Radio he shared the results:

"We found that the amount of activation in the brain was substantially reduced in a given task if the task was being performed simultaneously with another one."

In other words, you're not giving either task your all. And you're not being productive.

Researchers also found that doing several things at once has health risks such as mental burnout, anxiety and depression.

Too many people are obsessed with the idea of getting things done. They think their stature rises by doing tasks. Instead, they should focus on the result.

Yes, you want to strive for efficiency. But your work performance is not judged solely by the amount of stuff you get done. How you do it and whether you get a result is what's key. And if you offend people in the process or don't meet the goal, well, then, you haven't been very effective.

Trying to do two or more things at once is a habit. You can break it. First, you need to notice how much you do it. Notice simple stuff like whether you file your nails while you're on the phone. Or walk around the room and pick up paper clips or flip through files that have nothing to do with the conversation. Catch yourself and stop it. And focus on the one, main task at hand.

The employees who took phone calls while their manager spoke may have thought they were multi-tasking. I think it was more like professional suicide.

© by Andrea Kay