Why Multitasking Kills Your Productivity and How to Stop It

What Is Bad Multitasking?

According to Eliyahu Goldratt in "Critical Chain", the main cause of low efficiency in traditional production is “bad multitasking” – the practice of constantly switching between tasks such as cleaning a desk, ordering food, and writing a report.

When a manager repeatedly asks for progress on each task, the worker is forced to interrupt the current activity, resulting in a fragmented schedule (e.g., desk‑1 → food‑1 → report‑1 → desk‑1 …). This increases the total time needed for each task and drags the whole project behind schedule.

Why Multitasking Harms Performance

Research by Sophie Leroy (2009) introduced the concept of attention residue : after switching from an unfinished task A to task B, part of the brain continues processing A, consuming cognitive resources and creating “cognitive load”. This reduces focus on B and raises anxiety.

Working memory can hold only about four items; frequent switches overwrite the memory of the previous task, causing loss of ideas and longer recovery time.

Multiple switches also prevent entering a state of “flow”, because sustained attention on a single task is constantly broken.

How to Reduce the Damage of Multitasking

1. Meditate – before starting work, close your eyes, breathe deeply, and calm lingering thoughts.

2. Pose a Question – frame a clear question for the upcoming task (e.g., “What is the key insight of this PPT?”) to direct attention.

3. Use White Noise – play ambient sounds or instrumental music without lyrics to mask distractions.

4. Batch Minor Tasks – allocate a single time block for checking messages, emails, etc., instead of responding immediately.

5. Avoid Pomodoro for Irregular Schedules – work according to personal energy levels rather than a rigid timer.

6. Isolate from Interruptions – choose a quiet space or a “focus room” where you can work without external disturbances.