🧠 Why Multi-tasking Makes You Slower (& What To Do Instead)

Today’s Edition of Captivated Productivity [SUNDAY SERIES]: Why Multi-tasking Makes You Slower (& What To Do Instead)

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If you’re wondering why you can’t get more done…
even though you’ve been “working” all day…
even though you feel busy and responsive...

It’s probably not your workload.
Or even your motivation.
And it’s not that you need better productivity tools or the latest planner.

It’s the multitasking.

Multitasking makes you feel productive while quietly destroying progress. Your brain feels scrambled, drained, and behind, even after hours of effort, and even if you don’t consciously notice it right away.

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Your brain cannot focus on multiple conscious tasks at the same time. What it actually does is switch, rapidly.

Each time you multitask, your prefrontal cortex has to shut down one task, switch neural pathways, and boot up another. Over and over again.

So those 3 tasks you're doing 'together', (aka when you're on the zoom, writing the email, and responding to slacks),

are actually more like a juggling system in the background, in your brain:

shutting down one, booting up another, shutting down, booting up the next, etc., rapidly.

How exhausting.

Even if it 'works' for a while, studies show this constant switching can temporarily drop your effective IQ and increase mistakes by up to 50%, because your brain isn’t actually doing tasks simultaneously, it’s paying a tax every time it switches.

That’s why you reread the same sentence five times. Why you walk into a room and forget why you’re there. Why answering emails while watching TV leaves you mentally fried.

You’re burning energy on switching, not on progress. This is why multitasking feels busy… but can deliver so little.

(So here’s what you should try instead: Continues Below.)

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What to do:
Switch from multitasking to: single-tasking in micro blocks.

Set a 10-minute timer, and single-task on one thing only.

After 10 minutes, start the next micro-block/task for the next 10 minutes. You can move to the next task or stay with the one you're on.

You’ll be surprised how quickly your brain settles, and how much easier progress feels.

Pick one task. Remove all competing inputs. No extra tabs. No background apps. No jumping.

Let your brain stay on a single track long enough to build momentum.

This works because staying on one track eliminates the constant shutdown-and-restart cycle. Your brain saves energy, your focus deepens, and it can help you get more done, while feeling less mentally exhausted later.

Give it a try and see if it helps.

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