Do you sometimes feel as though you’re on a treadmill in your professional life? You were coasting along comfortably at a ‘five’ setting, yet the speed just bumped up to 10. While you may be able to keep up briefly, you’re exhausted merely trying to maintain the speed. You constantly fear being thrown off and everything crashing down. This is the way many feel in their current jobs.
Due to budget cutbacks and corporate downsizing, less people are being asked to do more and in some cases well beyond their scope; this strains their time, drains their energy and leads to great frustration and stress. While you may not be able to control what’s being thrown at you or asked of you by the employer, there are ways to effectively manage your multi-tasking day.
Work life is not a race to the finish line. Winners are not the ones who get it all done. Winners are those who get the most out of everything they do and make the biggest difference using their full capacity. While a few people will go to their grave saying, “I wish I could have worked more hours,” others may say, “I wish I got more out of the hours I worked.”
Results
It’s not all about making a good living. It’s about having a good life! Wherever you put your time, your focus and your energy is where you will get the greatest results. People who can effectively multitask, will easily beat the others in this fiercely competitive field.
Gone are the days when you could focus on one thing and doing it right made you a winner; at least not in the business world as professionals. Your job today demands focus on multiple tasks to stay ahead of the curve. Over the past 10 years, businesses have become lean, mean machines by reducing personnel and increasing the workload on those who remain on the job.
Multitasking is a must-have skill for any employee, yet most workers feel they are being asked to do too many tasks. Why do we see this disconnect between the workday realities and the employees perception?
Piling the work
It is because people have never learned exactly how to multitask. Multitasking is a learned skill and it takes years to properly master it. By learning how to multitask efficiently, you can dramatically reduce your workday stress, increase your productivity, and enjoy your work again. It’s a win-win for both the employee the employer.
Contrary to popular belief, multitasking is not about ‘piling on the work’ to the point of exhaustion. It’s about training the brain to channel energy in an efficient and effective manner to accomplish more in less time.
And believe it or not, one of the hallmarks of learning to multitask is to actually slow down to accomplish more.
Multitasking is a part of our new world. If you want to succeed, you need to learn how to multitask so it doesn’t overwhelm you and cause unnecessary stress. By simply slowing down and working up to the performance level you desire, you can multitask effectively and increase productivity. Simply put, learning how to maintain your highest level of mental functioning is your key to multitasking success.
Effectively manage your goals, priorities and focus. The first step is to take a baseline snapshot of where you spend your hours on a typical day and typical week and whether it is leading you to reach your goals.
The most important decisions you make during the day are what actions to take and not to take. This prioritization will determine where your time, energy and focus will be spent. Ask yourself “for every action taken or not taken, what is the intended result?” Life is about choices. In choosing what to work on, you need to distinguish between the ‘urgent’ and ‘important’. Start early working on the ‘urgent’ before the deadline approaches.
Management
Most people do not mind working hard, but they resent worrying hard. Feeling overwhelmed and overworked can lead to stress; however, stress is not an absolute cause and effect.
When you find your mind and your emotions wandering to the dark side, think … ‘why worry?’ Instead of worrying, go back to the source causing the worry and write it down. Reset your priorities, make a plan and take action to fix the conflict in your mind; manage conversations and the expectations of others to give you time to get back on track.
The solution to multiplying challenges is multitasking; you may have your own beliefs and attitudes but trust me - if you hope to beat others, the must skill is multitasking – its about productivity, efficiency, synergy and profitability for the business and less stress for you thus greater success in life through professional competitive advantage.