Task Switching
Anyway, I wanna talk about one other thing before we wrap on energy and capacity…and that's task switching.
It's a classic ADHD move, and a massive drain on your capacity and energy. You're “busy," but much less effective.
You get bored or distracted and hop from one type of work to another doing bits and pieces of this and that.
Did you know it can take up to 25 minutes to fully transition from one task to the next?
Especially if it's a completely different type of work. That's a lot of time.
And if you switch a bunch of times a day?
The math ain't mathin' in your favor, babe.
Here are 3 things you can try to minimize the task switching brain burden:
1) Transition rituals: Your brain needs space to switch between tasks. Create it with a designated break between transitions.
Here are some ideas to get you started
- A sound cue or specific song
- A quick walk or a few yoga poses
- Closing all unrelated tabs and telling yourself you're moving into another task. (sounds kinda silly, but it works)
Do whatever works for you.
2) Time blocks: This could look something like: 2 hours in the morning for creative work (ritual) then 2 hours in the afternoon for admin work.
3) Batch types of work on specific days: For example, meetings and client work on Mondays. Tuesday is creative work, Wednesday is admin and business development, etc. That way even when you're switching, it's the same type of work.
Bonus: Micro transition rituals. As you move into the next task, give yourself a few minutes to settle in. Open the tabs you need and review your notes.
You can use a combo of these too.
For example, I can't batch client meetings, but I can batch content creation..
Give this stuff a try.
See what works for you.
And if you still switch tasks frequently, don't beat yourself up.
Remember its how your brain works. It's a heat-seeking missile for novelty and dopamine.
