Sorry for this little gap in writing this column, was snowed under with unforeseen contingencies. These two weeks made me think deeper and swim in mindsets that help us become ‘next in class and I am very happy to let you know that a whole fountain of new ideas emerged from this churning. Will unfold these over the next few weeks so that they become useful as tools to reinvent and succeed more in whatever you do. Sharing experiences or helping relearning becomes valuable with relevance and successful implementation. This ethos continues as my guide in these original columns I write based on my life and three decades of multicountry, multidomain experiences. After all the biggest success of any professional, especially a communications professional is understanding and changing mindsets. So here you go, my 109th article – ‘The magical multitasking mindset’.
Why is multitasking a prerequisite for professional success?
In the world we live in today change is the only reality and constant. The speed of change has however multiplied over time and with the advent of the digital technology. Even 5 years ago, you could focus on just a few things in your personal and professional time and row your boat through the river of life. However, the pandemic and the VUCA world has changed the foundation of the human value system as well as expectations. We all have started to want everything at once and then more everything at once! The span of different assignments we do has more than doubled in quantity and quality. The focus we need to give to our internal and external clients has really sharpened. Even perfection sometimes is not enough. This is where juggling has to go beyond just keeping the cycle of balls moving by catching them. Multitasking effectively decides your success impact and career growth.
Developing a magical multitasking mindset
Believe me, there are human beings who are born with a disability to mindset. As you well know, the human brain is just incredible and we use just 10% of it, but this is just a myth, according to neurologist Barry Gordon in Scientific American. He explained that the majority of the brain is almost always active (Source: Medical News Today). Developing a magical multitasking mindset needs consciousness, focus and determination. However, the first step is to assess your multitasking natural abilities through testing it with a buddy. Be careful here, its not about juggling or running a race. It’s the ability to handle complex brain tasks parallelly and bringing them to positive completions. You need to also talk to your school/college teachers, your immediate and past seniors to ask them and gain feedback. You will surely know and realise your gaps once you compare your feedback with the level of your desired mindset. Then, you start working on them.
Create your magical multitasking mindset map
The only fuels that power magical multitasking mindset are concentration, tenacity and sharpness of focus. You literally transform yourself into a pilot of the latest air force jet where the mission is not just transporting humans or air cargo but to win a war. Increase your focus through guided brain exercises, learn the ability to keep mental track of various things simultaneously. Learn to handle pressure and deadlines calmly. Change your diet which powers alertness, thinking and focus- consult a nutritionist. Get into workouts and keep fit. A healthy body houses a healthy mind. Ensure that you create a work life balance, your mind needs refreshing downtime to be more effective the next day. Sleep is critical as it repairs your system as well as helps your brain learn and change. Improvement is a continuous process, raise the performance bar constantly, but remember there is one fuse to this whole process which can blow if you don’t watch out. That’s called stress! Don’t let your multitasking mind setting put so much pressure that you stress out and lose everything. Enjoy the process- grow and foster.
“The secret to multitasking is that it isn’t actually multitasking. It’s just extreme focus and organisation.” Joss Whedon
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