I am one of those people who is always doing something while doing something else.
Before you congratulate me on my multi-tasking abilities, let me assure you. I am beginning to hate it.
Take Saturday, for instance. I was watching Downton Abbey, writing my Sunday blog, plus I had a bin of cardboard I needed to cut to size, went into the kitchen and scooped some ice cream, and my phone was nearby just in case I need to look up something or text someone.
Why can’t I just sit still and watch a chapter or two of the telly? Or just sit and write a blog?
I tend to blame my senior-onset A.D.D. The older I get the less I can sit still for any length of time. I have already talked to my physician, so that part is just fine.
But I’m making myself crazy with all these things lined up to keep myself busy.
I’m too old to be kept so busy.
I’ve tried meditation, Valerian, and deep breathing. I’ve told myself I don’t need to keep busy every second of the day, yet everywhere I look there’s something I can be doing while I’m doing something else.
And I find myself thinking why not kill two birds with one stone? Sew the holes in my socks or research artists while a movie babbles in the background? And since I’m already online, why not check out other blogs, work on updating my website, look for a new recipe for Apple Crisp, and type a text to a friend? I can also paint my toenails and let them dry while I’m surfing and watching TV. I’m not moving around, after all ….
I’m making myself crazy.
So yesterday I decided to stop multi tasking. Just for the day. I had a sinus headache anyway, so I just aimed to do nothing.
At 8:30 pm I couldn’t take it anymore and went online, wrote this blog, turned on my iPad and downloaded a game, plus edited the story I wanted to post. That was after I took time to find some ambient music on YouTube.
It’s midnight now. It didn’t work.
I truly have to start tackling tasks one task at a time. Concentrate on one thing at a time. It’s okay if a half dozen ideas and projects bombard me at one time, but I have to learn to prioritize and not stress myself out by trying to do three, four, or five things at once.
Do you have multi-tasking-itis? Do you do ten things at one time? If you do, let me know how you do it. If you don’t, let me know how you do it as well.
Like I said earlier, the task list is getting longer and my attention span is getting shorter. And I’m not getting any younger.
I just can’t keep up with myself anymore …
Humoring the Goddess 
Always welcome and yes that is good for your health too.
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That’s what I’m going to blame it on! Let’s make a pact to slow down together. Tackle one thing at a time. If we can’t finish our scheduled assignment for the day, lets stop, put it away, and then we can move on to something else.
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Thank you for the sweet comment. I’m slowing down. I promise.
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Well you are still a “new” pensioner….:D
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Same here, I can’t seem to focus on any one project anymore, easily distracted, and I often have at least 6-10 projects going on at the same time. We are not alone, it must have something to do with the pandemic! 😉
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You are clearly not alone in that garden. 😁 You are most welcome. Thank you for sharing your writing!
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Hope all turns out well in the end with multi-tasking but you have to slow down a little bit if you are not feeling up to the mark. Lovely post.
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I am So glad I’m not the only one who tiptoes through the Garden of Madness every now and then! Thank you!
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I feel your frustration and also I appreciate the humorous undertone in your writing. You mentioned not being able to sit still for a length of time. A few months into the pandemic I began having difficulty sitting through a long show or movie. Strange. Nervous energy perhaps. I have a tendency to hyper-focus on things (one thing) and have to remind myself to take breaks.
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Oh… talking about it is half the battle! Thank you!
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I hope you find your way to a more peaceful state of mind. Namesta! Laura
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Honestly, there is much truth to your suggestion. I can’t tell you how many times I surf the net at bedtime, or play a game instead of reading. If I’m going to talk/text someone, I should just do it. Not text and surf and write. Same with my crafts. No problem making them with music or the TV in the background. But I don’t need stimuli from a half dozen other outlets confusing me as well. If I’m going to work on my website, I should work on it then turn off the computer. Thanks for the encouragement.
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Oh, yes yes! THAT I understand. I did too. Kids, job, housework. Who can do all of that? But we find a way. I think I’m bothered by the jitteryness that overcomes me when I try and do too much at once. Must be my old age…
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Love you! But what if you start three things at once? I sometimes get all pumped up in one direction then think of something else I should/could be doing, and switch to that. I do enjoy going in several different creative directions at the same general time — I get so excited! But I feel I’m going crazy not being able to focus on just one.
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I hear you and thank you for saying this. I can see doing something while you’re watching TV– a lot of evenings I’m alone and it’s background noise. But flitting from project to project on a whim is exhausting. I have to make a real effort to slow down. Period.
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Ha! You are so on the mark. I believe it has to be a CONSCIOUS decision daily to set a goal — a reasonable goal — and let that be that. I/we cannot keep on taking on dreams and making plans we can’t really handle. All that happens when we do is poor quality all around. And poor sleep, too!
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Honestly, you are an excellent candidate for a digital media vacation cure. I believe you would benefit tremendously by avoiding internet diversions for 21 days or so. If that sounds rash, consider going online only at scheduled and limited times each day. You could also try leaving your cellphone at home once in a while when you leave the house.
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I don’t do this all the time but sometimes and when I do some thing goes wrong. I used to be able to do this when I was younger, I had to, having a job, 2 kids and a husband, a house to clean, washing and ironing, ……
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I don’t understand why you think there’s anything wrong with doing ten things at a time. I don’t know what the problem is. I enjoy it and look forward to each thing I do…at the same time. It’s fun and I would be bored to death if I just did one thing. I might read one book but I’m reading three or four and just pick one of them up if I want to read. No problem.
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I find it difficult to just watch TV. I have to be crafting, knitting, or otherwise engaged in another activity. I am able to leave it at two or three things at once, but have always tended toward laziness if I give in to it.
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I understand your situation. As I age, I find my attention span lessens, unless I am immersed in something truly captivating like and exceptional film or meal or conversation. I have missed being able to read hundreds of pages of a book at one sitting ( a great book, mind you) for years now. I can only read a few pages, partially because my eyes tire out and I get restless.
We are all so overstimulated since the 90s when email and the internet entered our lives. Part of me yearns for slower times, until I am at a drive through or stuck in traffic. 🙂
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I need to learn to focus too. Sometimes I get so distracted
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Ha! I know plenty of people who multi-task successfully, but our problem dips into cosmic levels sometimes. How can we be totally “in the moment” when several moments try to exist in our minds at one time? I need to realize that I don’t need to experience EVERY experience to the max. That it’s okay to work on Angel Tears with just music in the background, or okay to just kick back and watch a movie AND NOTHING ELSE.
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What are we accomplishing, being supreme multi-taskers, except headaches and, in my case, sometimes half-done projects? I mean, I love being creative and all, but I have to learn how to pull in the creative reins now and then so I can do each job properly!
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You are not alone. I do this too. I’m not sure there is a cure for this. I love to read and will try to sit down and read for an hour but other things always pop up. Maybe we should create a club, Multitaskers Anonymous.
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I do this, too! I tell myself I’m going to sit down and catch up on shows I’ve missed but as soon as I turn on the TV my mind is constantly busy thinking of everything that needs to be done. So I do that instead to get it out of my head. And I jump from one thing to another. It can be so overwhelming and exhausting! Hopefully we can rest one day. 🤗
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