A+ R A-

Multi-Tasking Addiction

E-mail Print PDF

Share this article with a friend

Multi-tasking is a "normal" thing chronic Jugglers do that keeps them inside the status quo. Out of desperation Jugglers constantly engage in the identical mental patterns that characterize multi-tasking. "Multi-Tasking" is the ability to execute more than one task at the same time ("task" as a program and multiprocessing are often used interchangeably). Among Europeans Task (“tax”) refers to a piece of work assigned to or demanded of someone. In African Tradition, based upon humans' work being viewed as an intensification of the work the God Spirit does in Nature (but on a tiny scale), "Tasks" are self-assigned as a requirement for reaching the heaven Afterlife to make things better on earth for others and oneself. Another term for Multi-tasking is "Mind Scatter." The 13th century English word "scatter" originally meant "to squander" (reckless, wasteful) or "to shatter" (as in driving something in different directions and letting them fall where they will). With respect to the mind, the opposite of scatter and squander is Focus. To illustrate the differences, imagine the time of your first real romance. It was a wonderful day when you two became Aware of each other and an exciting moment when you were Introduced. Remember how eager you were to get Acquainted and the delights of becoming Familiar with each other. After that you bonded and blended as if you were part of each other—a “real knowing” of each other as if you had intertwined in Internalizing each other. At that point, you both moved in the same direction, at the same time, at the same speed, and toward the same goal. Note the ideas inside Aware, Introduced, Acquainted, Familiar, and Internalized Bonding are different stages of an evolving relationship. Also discern the specialness and the considerable differences in the thoughts and feelings present between being “Aware” and those of being “Internalized.” The same scenario like-kind differences apply to Focus and Multi-tasking (jack-of-all trades; master of none).

When one is Multi-tasking each of the involved things might be given the energy and attention that takes one only to the level of being Aware, Introduced, or Acquainted. If one is already "Familiar" with it, one stops there in ones thinking. Even then one may be deceiving oneself. It is frequent to hear non-thoughtful people reply: “I know that” (falsely believing they are at least “familiar” with some point just made) when, in reality, they are only “Aware” of it or, at best, “Acquainted” with it. What this does is to generate a mindset of: “I do not need to spend time on that subject.” In turn, they feel comfortable overlooking or discarding important information because it is of no interest or because they do not recognize its significance in this particular situation and at this particular time. Focus takes one down the opposite path. A multi-tasking misperception of Chronic Jugglers is that "it must be right" because everyone else is doing it (Emotional Thinking) and because employers demand it. Actually, multi-tasking is absolutely the wrong thing to do in order to pull oneself out of chronic juggling.

There are times when Multi-Tasking is beneficial but to know when requires significant thought. That thought centers on knowing what Tasks are (and watching television is not one of them) and what they do and how they are used. Such assessments determine when Multi-Tasking is and is not beneficial. If it is not of Keystone importance to the issue of Juggling, it is generally not beneficial. An expression I heard as a boy is "there is a time and a place for everything and for order to be present everything must be done in its proper time and place." Chronic jugglers do not know the proper time and place for what they do. In other words, although what they do may be important--or at least they think so--it is not of Keystone importance. True understanding that leads to insights where beneficial changes occur can come only from Internalized Bonding with the task at hand--and this is not possible if one is Multi-tasking. The key: Focus on only one thing until its completion.


Add comment


Security code