Efficient multitaskers, are you one?

That's a GREAT idea.

 

Overlapping tasks... I approach my job with that concept. Some times while fully immersed in one set of duties I'm mapping out the sequence of events to accomplish another project. I often am juggling three or four separate processes while on the clock. I've noted that almost no one is willing to involve themselves to that depth with work. It may be less stressful but it also makes them more expendable... not exactly desirable in this economy.

 

Your lack of specific examples intrigues me. Too vague and ambiguous to be of any use my friend.

 

Nope.

 

The specifics in relation to my job are likely too esoteric to be of much use I think but as an example... one duty is "striking in" counterplates for use in die cutting- a process that involves inserting alignment pins in the counters, spraying adhesive on them then affixing them to a die and pressing them onto a metal plate to be secured in a cutting press... this is done using an "easy press". Most folks will wait the 2-3 minutes while it's on impression while the adhesive sets up... usually staring at the easy press's gauges. I will instead fill that little void by either breaking down a "dead" (already been run) stripper or cleaning off "dead" counters. I also combine trips to die storage... putting "dead" dies away and coming back with one scheduled to be run instead of the usual empty handed.

Sometimes the multitasking occurs in my head as I study a layout while doing something else and have a plan in my head as to how I intend to attack the job instead of just winging it. Much of my specifics would mean more if I had visuals.

 

There is no such thing as multi tasking. The task we set for ourselves may contain subsets of activity. We cannot entertain more that one thought in any instant.

 

Then why am I thinking this profound and dumb both at the same time, bro?

 

Yes You Can.

 

Not at the same time, in quick succession.

 

That's the essence of "multi-tasking"...:2thumbsup:

 

Oh, I thought it described an ability to handle many things "at once".

 

Yes. What's the issue here?

 

Well it kind of gives a false impression of the way things are actually accomplished. "At once", the way it is being regarded here, represents an indeterminate amount of time within which various things are accomplished. Things that are accomplished are cultivated through singular attention to their conclusion. The more directly focused the quicker or more efficiently, it gets done.

 

I'm not suggesting anybody actively does more than one thing at any given time.
I'm not saying "at once".
It is possible to do one thing and think of another.
Multi-tasking.

 

humm
We have autonomous nervous functions like the heart beating which does not require our consciously directed attention. So we can set ourselves on a learned set of physical movements which do not require our consciously focused attention. We can pour a glass of water by setting the body into a range of habitual motion by an initial brief or intermittent signal.

What the fuck does this have to do with anything?

Well, the capriciousness of developments in our lives reflects our inconsistencies in attention. Results vary because our efforts and intentions vary. But results are always in proportion to duration and frequency of our efforts.

 

I finally found the terminology to describe my original intention.

Passive Opportunities

The idea is to automate passive opportunities. the dope, you seem to be arguing against the idea of splitting one's focus, which generally leads to a decline in productivity. I agree.

What is incredibly useful however is setting up a routine that strings several time consuming activities together to overlap and cut down on idle time. I think for most people idle time and transition fees (paying a price for switching tasks and interrupting your train of thought) are the primary limiting factors for what one can accomplish in a given day.

Soooooo, I'm trying to compile a list of some universally useful PASSIVE OPPORTUNITIES / BACKGROUND HABITS. They must be helpful in some way and require a very small percentage of one's available focus. You might notice an emphasis on feeling, smell, taste and touch as anything requiring your sight generally requires all your focus. Here are some I came up with.

Smells (nose)
Music (ears)
Sun
Cardio (while skill building)
Stretching-breathing-meditating
Physical / Mental Recovery (I like the idea of half a day spent pushing oneself physically the other half pushing one's self mentally)
Digestion (keeping your nutrition on point and reaping the benefits long after you're done chewing)
Shower (including sink activities, contacts, brush teeth, floss, nasal irrigation)
Cooking, Dishes, Laundry

e.g. ideal beginning to a very busy day

10:00 - create environment of favorite sounds / smells
10:02 - prep baked potato, throw in oven
10:04 - load dish washer, turn on
10:06 - load washing machine, turn on
10:08 - protein shake
10:10 - short, intense, squat / deadlift workout
10:19 - set stove to low-medium, heat water for green tea
10:20 - hot shower w/ protein shake + lower body stretch
10:29 - steep green tea
10:30 - study session w/ green tea
11:00 - pull baked potato out of oven, perforate and pop open to cool
11:02 - unload dish washer
11:04 - unload washing machine, load dryer
11:06 - eat baked potato
While the next few hours pass the lower body muscles are absorbing nutrients at an accelerated pace, and the next few days those muscles will likely get slightly stronger and increase in size by a small amount.

So that's an example of how many goals can be met in a little over an hour. I feel like it's easy to see how hyperproductive that time period can be if it's organized around passive opportunities. A significant portion of the population won't accomplish that much in an entire day. It's also hard to see how anyone can approach that level of production by spontaneously switching from task to task, relying on discursive thought as their guide.

 

I'm a huge advocate of working smarter > working harder.

(1) Precisely! Recognizing these opportunities is critical in my opinion. If one realizes which physical movements are performed several times a day, every single day, the importance of optimizing them seems to become crystal clear. They will be performed thousands upon thousands of time in your life. Any gains in efficiency will have a significant impact.

(2) see above

(3) No! Work smarter > work harder.