We hear it all the time in our society: you need to be able to multitask. It’s part of many job descriptions. It’s a question asked in interviews. It’s so perpetuated in our culture that we believe it is the single most important trait for employees and management alike. But what if we told you multitasking is myth? Experts on brain health and psychology suggest that our minds aren’t built to focus on more than one task at a time. And when people say they multitask, what they’re really doing is splitting attention between two or more things. Can multitasking be negatively affecting your ability to be a good manager? Let’s take a closer look.

Are You Creating a Traffic Jam?

Psychologists refer to the effects of multitasking as a traffic jam. Your brain is incapable of having more than one though at a time. You might have multiple, rapid-fire thoughts, but that will impact your ability to focus on each individual thought. This will create a dam or traffic jam and cause a greater block than it solves.

Are You Unable to Focus on Important Tasks?

Multitasking can lead to mistakes due to the lack of focus on the task you need to accomplish. When you go rapidly from one task to another, you’re unable to focus on one single thing and will create bigger problems. Focusing on one task at a time will actually allow you to accomplish everything in less time. Work on your prioritization skills instead.

Are Your Employees Noticing Your Stress Levels?

When you try to do too many things at once, it’s easy to get overwhelmed. And when you get so stressed that it affects your ability to manage your team, it can cause a much bigger problem. When your staff sees that you are stressed, it can increase their stress levels as they might misinterpret your behavior as being directed at them.

Can You Make the Right Decisions?

All of this can also affect your ability to make the right decisions. When you’re juggling so many things at once, it can be hard to see the forest through the trees. You can’t see how each individual decision is an important aspect of the whole. You may find yourself making inaccurate decisions because you’re working with incomplete information on each contributing task.

Are you interested in making yourself a better manager? Contact the team at Harvard Resource Solutions Staffing Agencies in Troy MI to learn how we can help.