Multitasking: Godsend or Necessary Evil?

Do you think multitasking enhances your productivity?

Kelly Danison (BS Sports Management '05): Of course I do.  I get more done in less time. 

Mike Canan (BSJ '02 Print): It makes productivity possible. Without multitasking, I could not get through a day.

Sarah Spence (BSJ '03 PR):  Multitasking has been great because there are times when I have to do more than one thing at a time. It also keeps me from wasting time trying to get my concentration back on track because I can do quick, less strenuous tasks while I get my thoughts back in order.

Marah Eakin (BSJ '03 Magazine): Sometimes. Sometimes it hinders it big time, though. I’ll have 18 projects going on, and because I’m working on all of them at the same time, I’ll finish two instead of working on one project at a time, and I could have finished four of them.

What sort of tasks do you usually switch between?

Mike Canan: Talking to reporters, talking to the public, scanning news Web sites, editing stories, attending news and planning meetings, planning news coverage, assigning stories.

Sarah Spence: Normally I switch between reading bills and legislative reports or sending e-mails while reading through news clips.

Marah Eakin: I switch between listening and checking my e-mail. Listening meaning when I’m on the phone, or listening or talking to a coworker.

Kelly Danison: My job has me working with numerous different clients and on numerous projects, so I am constantly balancing e-mails, phone calls and meetings. A lot of the times I find myself sending e-mails while on a conference call with colleagues or a client. As long as I am able to listen and answer questions when needed, I can knock out a good number of e-mails.

Is there any particular pattern to when you switch tasks?

Sarah Spence: I will sometimes check my e-mail or read through some news clips if I start to get writer's block or feel my concentration slipping from the current task at hand.

Kelly Danison: I am sitting in front of a computer all day, so once an e-mail pops up, I try to deal with it right away so that they don't pile up on me. But there are those days that I don't have access to my e-mail (out of the office for work or for personal reasons), and trying to get through the e-mails can be a very daunting task.

Mike Canan: I used to have to turn my e-mail off to be able to get work done. Now I keep it on. I try to hone in on certain tasks. Other tasks I allow myself to tackle the most important things, even if that means interrupting something I'm doing. At the end of the day, I make sure I got everything that I had to get done completed. I keep detailed lists of the things that I need to do and the things that I must get done before the day is over. Other lists include stories that I want to track throughout the day.

Marah Eakin: Sometimes. Sometimes when I feel stuck, I’ll go to a music Web site or something for two minutes. It helps me move through it. It’s work related.

Do you have any suggestions to promote more productive multitasking?

Mike Canan: Be organized and prioritize are the most important things.

Kelly Danison: A person can only multitask if they are organized. If his or her desk or life in general is a mess, then they won't be able to concentrate on the task at hand. Everything has a place, whether it is a paper clip, pen or file. This way when you need it, it will be there, and you don't have to rummage through stacks of papers [or] drawers to find it.  This is how I multitask, at least.

Sarah Spence: I think the most important thing is to try not to bite off more than you can chew. Vary the level of difficulties of the tasks you are performing. That way you can give yourself a bit of a break while still getting things accomplished.

Marah Eakin: I think knowing when to focus and knowing when to stop doing what you’re doing. You need to set rules. I remember when I was in college writing papers, I’d want to be checking my e-mail, but I wouldn’t let myself click on anything until my work was done.

Do you think, in the long run, that multitasking is a good or bad thing?

Marah Eakin: I think a good thing, but I think it’s gone maybe too far. Our attention spans are getting shorter.

Kelly Danison: I think that in the long run multitasking is a great thing. It allows you to accomplish a great deal of work, whether it is in your personal or professional life, but there are some times that it can be a bad thing. These are the times that something deserves your undivided attention. You just have to recognize when those times come up and give them your full attention.

Mike Canan: It's a necessary evil. It would be ideal if everyone could just focus on one task at a time and do a really good job at that one task. But that's not the way the world works.