Hey guys, I wrote a blog post about the (hidden) cost of switching between activities. Also applicable to chess if you're spending time to improve your gameplay.
Would really really appreciate and love your feedback, on the writing, topic, or future topics!
http://feedingfire.net/the-cost-of-switching/The site you linked me to asked me for a password lol...
Ah really sorry! I thought no one was looking at it, and was planning to revamp the site as planned.
The password has been removed.
Would love to know what you think about the post!
Looked at your site - can't help but think you'll be asking for money somewhere down the line!
Can you tell us anything more?
Nice article! I was doing something important, but I'm glad I switched over to reading this for a moment.
This is an interesting concept, and definitely for many people this is a problem. If you are analytically minded, having clutter or constantly switching tasks can really reduce your problem-solving ability. However, more creative-minded people often thrive in messy environments and benefit from switching. I often found, for instance, at university that if I started a task like a paper, and I hammered out a basic thesis and outline conceptually of where I wanted to go with said paper, if I continued to try to press on from there for a set amount of time I wouldn't accomplish much. Instead, I'd go off and do a bunch of other unrelated tasks, sometimes things that might just be seen as procrastination. After indulging in these often time-wasting endeavors, an idea would blast to the front of my mind about the paper and I could go back to working on it for hours, exploding upwards of 3/4 of the paper out seemingly effortlessly.
I think the real key to benefiting from task-switching lies in time management. If we know we are going to jump around and do multiple things over the course of time we might want to plan out for accomplishing a set of tasks, we should at the very least write down all those tasks and their deadlines so that we allow ourselves time to focus on them. With my paper example, I would never say "my paper is due in 6 hours, so I will sit down for 3 hours and work on my paper." I would start the process a day or two in advance, so that when I went back to that 3 hour window, I would be jumping back in with fresh ideas and a new outlook that my subconscious mind was working out in the background of those other tasks.
Does this mean I'm saying there's no detriment to task switching? Of course not. It has to be done in a meaningful way that benefits your thinking and working style to have any effective measure to it. But for certain people, if done with a certain purpose, it can actually yield good results and offset the "switch loss" you discuss.
Good post!
Yea for sure Chunkymonkey,
My concern isn't money here. What I really want is to build a small tightly-close and supportive community. I want to see the lives of my readers change for the better. I want to hear that they are making real progress in their lives. Getting closer and closer to where they want to be. This means helping them become more productive and effective with what they set out to do.
Some areas I'm planning to tap into are morning routines (starting your day on the right foot), proper planning and focus (daily and long-term direction), and habit building (to push you forward).
Also, to expand on the revamp idea: I am switching from blog layout to course format. Sort of like Udemy and Lynda. I think blogs are the easiest way to consume content, but I want to build something that's actionable. My site would allow me to offer a practical approach and 1-on-1 guidance for my community.
Now that I think about it, I will most likely have both format! Just you asking me to tell you more is helping me lots, so thank you for the question. :)
Hope I answered your question. Is there anything specific you would like to know more about?
Static_shadow, love your insights! Creativity is a tricky thing. Structuring yourself for creativity is like asking a baby to talk when they aren't ready (or reading an opening repertoire book when they're rated only 1300).
When I'm writing an essay, the mind definitely needs its rest. I definitely get my best ideas and thoughts when I'm going for a stroll outside.
I'll definitely hit upon this topic more in future posts. Thanks for your insights and reading my post. :)
Yes, thanks for the reply but you didn't answer the question -specifically "Will you be asking for money somewhere down the line?"
I'm going to start a blog on how to get a straight answer!