Do you ever have those days where the more stressed you get, the more everything else falls apart?

One big source of stress for me at work is multitasking, and I feel like the more I do that, the more errors I make. And the more errors I make, the worse my day becomes.

I was having one of those days last Friday. I was driving up to the mountains with my family that night, a million thoughts running through my mind, and I saw this sign for a runaway truck ramp. “Yes!” I thought, “that’s what I need! A runaway ramp to slow me down!”

It has to be pretty scary for truck drivers when they realize you’re their brakes are giving out and they need to decide whether to go full-tilt up that ramp or try to downshift back into control.

The stakes are lower for those of us who work behind a desk, but the feeling that things are out of control is still there. In practice, we often convince ourselves that multitasking makes us more productive and useful. We practically boast about everything we’re juggling! How many times have heard this conversation:

“How are you?”

“Oh my gosh, I have 1,000 things on my plate right now. I am so busy!”?

Studies cast doubt on how much we should really be crowing over our busyness. Research even suggests that the cognitive load associated with multitasking can make us 40% less productive.

That drop in productivity is probably attributable to the time we spend mentally ramping up—there’s that metaphor again!—to remember what we were doing on that same task. Go from task to task and that time ramping up starts to cost us more time than it saves us, especially when the tasks are complex.

So here is what I suggest we practice together:

Take the Runaway Ramp. when you find yourself speeding, find something that you can do to remind yourself to slow down and reset.
Make a list and try to work on one thing on the list at time
Turn off easy distractions, such as social media and email alerts or phone calls and text alerts
Use the 15-minute rule. Try to fully devote yourself to one thing for 15 or, if you’re super-ambitious, 20 minutes before checking emails or your phone. Journal how that feels and notice your productivity and reduction in crankiness

Let’s hear your tips and stories on multitasking and how you take the runaway ramp! Follow us on social media and let us know!

[i] https://www.verywellmind.com/multitasking-2795003#:~:text=Multitasking%20seems%20like%20a%20great,by%20as%20much%20as%2040%25.

[ii] Rogers R, Monsell S. The costs of a predictable switch between simple cognitive tasks. J Exp Psychol Gen. 1995;124(2):207-231. doi:10.1037/0096-3445.124.2.207

The Runaway Truck Ramp and 4 Tips to Conquer Multitasking