Mastering the Art of Single-Tasking
Today I decided to ditch multi-tasking for a while and found that single-tasking is definitely underrated! I'm generally a multi-tasker, it's a habit I've developed - because I CAN do it I just do it. And I by multi I mean 4,5,6,7+ things at once, flitting from one to another and back again. I'm also a very good 'starter' and a not-so-great finisher.
Where does all this get me? I find myself feeling I get nothing done even though I never stop. My house reflects the ten million loose ends I have running. The hoover's lying out from the cleaning I half did yesterday (I did downstairs and intended to do upstairs after x, y, z). My cup of tea's been microwaved three times because I always forget to drink it (it's still in the microwave - I had decided to hoover downstairs while it nuked). There's compost in the garden that I forgot about and left in the garden after heading for a tea break mid planting (... I spotted that this morning, it'd been out all night!) There's dirty laundry at the bottom of the stairs that I threw down to put to wash, but then got sidetracked by the seed packet I found at the base of the stairs.... and I decided to finally get round to planting them in the garden. Is that enough examples to help you get the jist?! There are sooooo many more that I could keep you here all day. But, no more of those... FOCUS.
Focus is what I lack. I have all the right intention, lots of passion for lots of projects/ tasks etc. There are SO many things I want to do/ feel/ experience/ write about... I often find myself totally overwhelmed by it all and stick an episode of TV on instead of deciding where to START. I've read the Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle (the title is self-explanatory) and am all for the benefits of staying in the moment and not having my head in the past or future. Yet I've struggled to LIVE the IDEOLOGY. What does it mean for me to be 'in the moment' on a daily basis, when I'm caught up in the ins and outs of everyday life?
Today it felt like an epiphany when I happened to wake up with the rare gift of focus, and found myself single-tasking (ah you lovely lucky people who inately have this gift!). I simply asked, what do I most WANT to do NOW (not this afternoon, not tomorrow, not 'what MUST I get done today, not 'what didn't I get round to yesterday that I really ought to have), and then asked again after I completed that task. When my energy wasn't spread across 10 jobs at once I found it much easier to ENJOY the moment, even when doing a 'chore'. I found my energy growing as I completed each task and put everything I'd needed for that task away. Much to my delight, being busy was making the place gradually tidier, rather than my usual VERY messy for ages (whilst I carried out my tasks) and then very tidy for a short time (once I'd completed all 10 tasks after many weeks/days/hours (sometimes months!) and before I started the next lot) routine.
I found it much easier to go back to where I was when I needed to break off (which happens a lot when you have a 5 month old!), and it was much easier to adapt to the unfolding day with minimal or no stress. I found it easier to be honest with myself about whether I'd done enough of x for one day (and tidy it away if so), and whether I really wanted to prioritise x today... because I had some mind space to hear that inner voice.
I will usually say I don't have time for 'stillness' to hear my intuition and relax, but I realise now I've been filling all the little opportunities with noise and business. I don't NEED to MEDITATE for 30 minutes a day.... Waiting for the microwave rather than starting another job provides a few minutes to THINK, PROCESS, BREATHE or JUST BE. So does sitting down and watching the bath run instead of putting the washing on/ putting clothes away/checking my email/ watering the plants/ replying to texts/all of the above(!) while I wait. We are very busy people who are brought up through school, work and society to value our PRODUCTIVENESS. We want to do as much as possible in a short space of time, especially those bits we don't like so much. Sometimes quantity overrides quality, including quality of life, without us even thinking about it.
Most importantly, when today was about over, I went to bed with a sense of accomplishment, not because of quantity done and experienced (though today was a fortunate day where there was plenty), but because I enjoyed it and the quality was spot on. I really felt like I'd gotten somewhere for a change! GO ME!
It all happened quite by accident, but in future I'll make a conscious effort to use this technique on purpose... If you feel yourself stressed, frazzled, exhausted, mind fogged, and wondering why so little gets done when you never stop, why not give it a go? See if it helps you stay in the moment and feel accomplished after an hour's/day's worth of jobs and tasks - both the pleasurable AND the "mundane"? :-)
Where does all this get me? I find myself feeling I get nothing done even though I never stop. My house reflects the ten million loose ends I have running. The hoover's lying out from the cleaning I half did yesterday (I did downstairs and intended to do upstairs after x, y, z). My cup of tea's been microwaved three times because I always forget to drink it (it's still in the microwave - I had decided to hoover downstairs while it nuked). There's compost in the garden that I forgot about and left in the garden after heading for a tea break mid planting (... I spotted that this morning, it'd been out all night!) There's dirty laundry at the bottom of the stairs that I threw down to put to wash, but then got sidetracked by the seed packet I found at the base of the stairs.... and I decided to finally get round to planting them in the garden. Is that enough examples to help you get the jist?! There are sooooo many more that I could keep you here all day. But, no more of those... FOCUS.
Focus is what I lack. I have all the right intention, lots of passion for lots of projects/ tasks etc. There are SO many things I want to do/ feel/ experience/ write about... I often find myself totally overwhelmed by it all and stick an episode of TV on instead of deciding where to START. I've read the Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle (the title is self-explanatory) and am all for the benefits of staying in the moment and not having my head in the past or future. Yet I've struggled to LIVE the IDEOLOGY. What does it mean for me to be 'in the moment' on a daily basis, when I'm caught up in the ins and outs of everyday life?
Today it felt like an epiphany when I happened to wake up with the rare gift of focus, and found myself single-tasking (ah you lovely lucky people who inately have this gift!). I simply asked, what do I most WANT to do NOW (not this afternoon, not tomorrow, not 'what MUST I get done today, not 'what didn't I get round to yesterday that I really ought to have), and then asked again after I completed that task. When my energy wasn't spread across 10 jobs at once I found it much easier to ENJOY the moment, even when doing a 'chore'. I found my energy growing as I completed each task and put everything I'd needed for that task away. Much to my delight, being busy was making the place gradually tidier, rather than my usual VERY messy for ages (whilst I carried out my tasks) and then very tidy for a short time (once I'd completed all 10 tasks after many weeks/days/hours (sometimes months!) and before I started the next lot) routine.
I found it much easier to go back to where I was when I needed to break off (which happens a lot when you have a 5 month old!), and it was much easier to adapt to the unfolding day with minimal or no stress. I found it easier to be honest with myself about whether I'd done enough of x for one day (and tidy it away if so), and whether I really wanted to prioritise x today... because I had some mind space to hear that inner voice.
I will usually say I don't have time for 'stillness' to hear my intuition and relax, but I realise now I've been filling all the little opportunities with noise and business. I don't NEED to MEDITATE for 30 minutes a day.... Waiting for the microwave rather than starting another job provides a few minutes to THINK, PROCESS, BREATHE or JUST BE. So does sitting down and watching the bath run instead of putting the washing on/ putting clothes away/checking my email/ watering the plants/ replying to texts/all of the above(!) while I wait. We are very busy people who are brought up through school, work and society to value our PRODUCTIVENESS. We want to do as much as possible in a short space of time, especially those bits we don't like so much. Sometimes quantity overrides quality, including quality of life, without us even thinking about it.
Most importantly, when today was about over, I went to bed with a sense of accomplishment, not because of quantity done and experienced (though today was a fortunate day where there was plenty), but because I enjoyed it and the quality was spot on. I really felt like I'd gotten somewhere for a change! GO ME!
It all happened quite by accident, but in future I'll make a conscious effort to use this technique on purpose... If you feel yourself stressed, frazzled, exhausted, mind fogged, and wondering why so little gets done when you never stop, why not give it a go? See if it helps you stay in the moment and feel accomplished after an hour's/day's worth of jobs and tasks - both the pleasurable AND the "mundane"? :-)