It is true that the internet has made it possible to do whatever number of things you want.

There is endless information—You have what only a king could dream of a few centuries ago at your fingertips.

The successful have realized that it isn’t about collecting endless facts—It’s about being able to use your judgement weed through that information.

You have to be able to figure out what’s worth knowing, how to apply things, and when things will be important.

Albert Einstein famously couldn’t tell a reporter the speed of sound, because there was no use in knowing, “such readily available information.”

Even back then, before the internet (which made finding information infinitely quicker and easier) Einstein knew it wasn’t about collecting endless facts.

The successful will be those who have honed their judgment, thinking, and clarity through solitude, deep thinking, and practice.

Judgement, thinking and clarity can indeed be practiced through things such as writing and learning models of thinking.

Solitude, deep thinking, and writing will always beat just learning mental models.

And you should never in any case become dependent to models and systems.

However I can’t do solitude or deep thinking for you—I can however teach you about different methods of thinking.

So I have created a new series on bias recognition and mental model—Read each one and apply it.

Remember: Tools and information are useless unless applied towards some goal you have collect them for.

With that being said let’s look at the first mental model:

Multi-Tasking Fallacy

What is it?

The multitasking fallacy refers to the common, but mistaken belief that doing multiple tasks at once increases productivity.

In reality, dividing attention between tasks often reduces efficiency, increases errors, and prolongs completion times.

Why is this important?

The Multi-tasking Fallacy fits more under the category of bias recognition.

When it comes to biases (that aren’t useful) the most important thing is simply being aware of them.

Being aware of this bias helps you prevent falling prey to it.

What’s a common example of this?

A classic example is an overworked underling in a corporate environment that is always doing multiple things at once such as responding to emails during a virtual meeting while finishing some report that’s due in an hour.

Instead of saving time, they miss key points in the meeting and make mistakes in the report, requiring extra time for corrections later.

As stated the most important thing is being aware of this bias so you can break free of it.

However simply being aware may not be enough to break free of such an ingrained method of work.

So here is a simple guide to overcome The Multi-Tasking Fallacy—Including ways to work more efficiently and productively

You can download a free printable guide/checklist here.

Template for Overcoming The Multitasking Fallacy

1. Acknowledge the Limitation of Focus

   • Understand and ACCEPT that your brain works best when focusing on one task at a time. Multitasking can lead to "attention residue," where part of your focus lingers on previous tasks.

2. Prioritize Your Tasks

   • Create a to-do list and rank tasks by importance and urgency.

   • Always complete the task that has the highest importance and urgency first (no matter how much resistance you feel)

3. Use the Pomodoro Technique

   • Dedicate 30-90 minutes (depending on personal variance) of undivided attention to one task, followed by a short break. Repeat this process to maintain focus and productivity.

4. Eliminate Distractions

   • Turn off notifications, silence your phone, and close irrelevant tabs to minimize interruptions.

5. Batch Similar Tasks Together

   • Group related tasks, like responding to emails or returning calls, into specific time blocks to streamline workflow.

   • A common example where you already do this (or at least I hope do) is with your laundry.

6. Track Results

   • Monitor how much more productive and error-free your work becomes when monotasking versus multitasking.

   • Also try out different lengths of times for your pomodoro sessions to find out what length of time works best for you.

Follow this method of becoming aware, working smartly, testing out minor tweaks and tracking the results, and you will see a noticeable shift in your productivity (and stress levels).

There’s never going to be a one size fits all method of thinking or doing that will magically cure all your problems.

It will vary as you, your life, skills, and tasks change.

Make sure to download the checklist so that you can print it out and have it in view when you work.

And if you found value in this, please share it with someone who you think will also find value in it.

Thank you for reading, another issue will be out soon.