How to Multitask Without Breaking Your Brain
Take these steps to mitigate the harmful effects of doing a million things at once
We live in the golden era of multitasking. Technology has made it possible to send emails on a walk, text your significant other at work, and play Civilization in class. You can have a conversation with someone while scrolling through Twitter. You can read an article while plugging data into a spreadsheet. In some work environments, Slack and Gchat aren’t just accepted forms of communication, but required, and it’s common for modern workers to spend their days juggling emails, assignments, and a constant stream of interoffice conversation all at once.
Unfortunately, multitasking isn’t a skill to hone so much as a pitfall to avoid. In fact, according to a study recently published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, multitasking is taking a serious toll on our brain cells, with “heavy media multitaskers” — people who constantly switch between screens, tabs, and apps — eventually developing weaker memories.
“Fifty percent of people think they’re great multitaskers, but only 1 percent really are, so 49 percent of those people are deluding themselves.”
