We’re always talking about multitasking and how it messes with your productivity, but have you heard of its better half? Monotasking is an overlooked practice that brings tons of benefits to your life. Here are 3 reasons why you should monotask.
What is monotasking?
Monotasking, as the name suggests, refers to the practice of dedicating yourself to a single given task. That means no jumping back and forth from different projects, no mid-task chats with colleagues, and no glancing through your social media during your working period. To put it simply, it’s about focusing on the task at hand with minimal interruptions until you’re done.
Monotasking versus Multitasking
Monotasking is quite the opposite of multitasking — and for good reasons! Multitasking, while once celebrated as a means for people to be more productive, has been found to have tons of negatives. People who multitask experience a lowering of their IQ, produce lower quality work and get overwhelmed more quickly. People are slowly realizing the cons of multitasking, and moving forward, are embracing monotasking.
3 reasons why you should monotask
#1 Monotasking makes you more productive
Multitasking gives us the illusion of being more productive as we jump from tasks, but often, the opposite is happening. When we multitask, our brains jump from one situation to another. This means that we enter a new task without remembering what our previous step in the project was. We forget things, get careless, or get sloppy. Multitasking can also be more tiring because you feel like you’re doing a lot more (when you might not be in the first place!) In contrast to this, monotasking helps you become more productive. When you sit down for a fixed period of time and focus on one task, you’re likely to finish it better and quicker. You don’t need to constantly recollect your thoughts, trace back, or recheck your work. That saves you tons of time!
#2 Monotasking makes you mindful
Monotasking also teaches you to live in the present. Mind you, monotasking doesn’t have to only apply to what you do at work. You can monotask by reading a book, meditating, or eating without distractions. These practices allow you to fully immerse in the experience before you. This brings you closer to your thoughts and helps you enjoy each small moment in life.
#3 Monotasking boosts your emotions
When we think of multitasking, we often think of sporadic changes in tasks — and that’s stressful! Monotasking is the opposite of that. Since you’re fully immersed in one task, you can stay focused and calm. It’s even quite peaceful to be left with your own thoughts and be uninterrupted!
As you can see, there are plenty of reasons why you should monotask. Give it a go today with mindful tools like a Timeqube! A Timeqube is a mindful timer that changes color with the passing of time. Here’s how you can use it to monotask: set the Timeqube timer for 30 minutes. Sit down, put your phone on silent, and get to work. After the 30 minutes is up, you can switch to other tasks, take a break, or chat with friends. It’s that simple!
