Switchtasking is bouncing your attention back and forth between two tasks and losing a little time and progress at every switch. It's one of four types of multitasking, and it's the one most of us do all day while feeling very busy.
Does your company still list "multitasker" as a quality it wants in an employee? I tell my HR clients that if a job description still asks for multitasking skills, it's telling every candidate the company hasn't caught up on the research.
Here are the four types, from the one that's fine to the one that's quietly eating your day.
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1. Background tasking
Not all of it is bad. Background tasking is pairing something that needs your attention with something that doesn't: listening to a podcast while you cook, clean, or exercise. I catch up on podcasts that way all the time. In the photo, I'm reading my Kindle while hula hooping.
2. Multitasking
Multitasking is doing two things at the same time when both need your attention. In a study of 200 people, researchers at the University of Utah found that about 2.5% could drive and talk on a phone without either one getting worse. They called them supertaskers (Watson and Strayer, 2010). Chances are you aren't one of them. I'm not either.
If you're trying to learn something, it needs your full attention.
3. Hypertasking
Hypertasking is work multitasking that follows you into your personal life. A girlfriend and I used to meet once a month at a coffee shop for two hours of talking, eating, drinking coffee, and doing a little work. Did we get more done than we would have at home? Absolutely not. It was more for social engagement than for work.
It can also be dangerous: texting while driving, or reading your phone while you cross the street.
4. Switchtasking
Switchtasking is the big one, because we do it so fast it feels like doing two things at once. If two tasks use the same part of your brain, like writing an email and talking on the phone, you can't do them at the same time. You're trading off between them.
You can hear it on a call when the other person is reading email. Their tone changes, and there's a pause before every answer. I've asked people to call me back once they're done reading their email. That usually gets their attention.
Each switch only costs a fraction of a second. They add up. Psychologist David Meyer has said those small mental blocks can cost as much as 40% of someone's productive time (American Psychological Association). For most people, the biggest culprit is email.
How to switchtask less
Work on one task at a time, and decide what it is before you start.
Close the tabs you don't need for that task.
Close email and chat during focus blocks. You don't have to answer every email the moment it lands.
Put your phone on Do Not Disturb. Here's what Do Not Disturb mode does and how to set it up.
One Thing You Can Do Now
Count the tabs open in your browser right now. Close every one you don't need for the task in front of you, and keep email closed for the next 50 minutes.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is switchtasking? Switchtasking is moving your attention back and forth between two tasks, like writing a report and checking email. Each switch costs a little time and progress, and the switches add up.
What are the four types of multitasking? Background tasking, multitasking, hypertasking, and switchtasking. Background tasking pairs something that needs your attention with something that doesn't. Switchtasking costs the most, because it happens all day.
Can anyone really multitask? A few people can. In a University of Utah study of 200 people, about 2.5% could drive and talk on a phone without either getting worse.
Is background tasking bad for productivity? Usually not. Listening to a podcast while you cook or exercise works because only one task needs your attention.
Resources
- Multitasking: Switching costs (American Psychological Association)
- Supertaskers: Profiles in extraordinary multitasking ability (University of Utah, via ScienceDaily)
- What Does Do Not Disturb Mode Do? When to Use It
- General Productivity podcast episodes
- Team training on focus and prioritization
