The case against multitasking

And the case for strategic pauses to boost productivity

One of the most pervasive and pernicious modern myths is that multitasking is a smart strategy—or that it’s even neurologically possible.

The word multitasking originated in the 1960s as a computer term. But humans are not computers; we can only focus on one thing at a time.

When you “multitask,” what you are actually doing is rapidly shifting among various points of focus, to the detriment of your attentional faculties, memory, productivity, and overall mental health.

Two antidotes:

1. Monotasking: the deliberate policy of blocking out a discrete chunk of time to give your full attention to only one thing. (It can help to put your phone in another room.)

2. Pausing: inserting short breaks into your periods of intense focus. A study by Microsoft found that taking ten-minute breaks improved their employees’ cognition, focus, and stress levels. Another study done by the NIH found that even a break of a few seconds can help. (It’s best not to revert to your phone during these breaks. Instead, take a walk, meditate, or chat with a friend.)

We live in an era characterized not only by rampant distraction but also by hustle culture—the idea that we need to constantly grind it out. The studies on pausing put the lie to this trope and show that resting your brain cements learning, boosts creativity, and reduces mental fatigue.

To learn more about these strategies, check out my interview with Dr. Aditi Nerurkar, a Harvard stress expert who found that mono-tasking and pausing vastly improved her own stress. She’s got lots of other practical tips.

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Episode cheatsheet

The big takeaway

Dr. Aditi Nerurkar, a Harvard physician specializing in stress management, shares five time-efficient strategies to reduce stress and increase resilience. These "resets" are meant to help rewire your brain and body to better handle the pressures of modern life.

Stress less, live more: 5 resets for a calmer you