Multitasking: could it be a gift rather than a curse? Maybe this is old news to some, but I’m just starting to realise that being forced to do a million things at once gives rise to a set of skills that’s actually quite useful. Then again, it wouldn’t be that useful if you weren’t having to multitask in the first place… I guess it’s a bit of a vicious cycle. But still, there are benefits to dispersed attention, and one of them is that you pick up on things you might not be attuned to if you were focused primarily on one thing.
For example, today I was out the front turning the compost while talking to a client on the phone, craftily stacking my daily squats routine into the mix. I was also doing my darnedest to plan dinner in the background, knowing that I had back-to-back sessions until 8pm and the fridge was virtually empty. I’d just landed on forking out for a healthy food delivery and simultaneously struck a deal with my client, when I caught a flash out of the corner of my eye.
I rapidly recognised it as my neighbour’s small dog running out onto the road, as does sometimes with seemingly zero street smarts. I told the client to hold the thought, leapt over the fence and scooped up the dog just a few seconds before a car came careening around the corner. Most dogs would have gotten out of the way in time, but let’s just say I’ve observed this one enough to know not to put my faith in that. In effect, my multitasking lifestyle might just have saved the little idiot’s life.
Point is, maybe there’s something to be said for being able to weigh up low carb meal delivery options while talking business and doing yard work. It goes beyond the skill of doing all those things at the same time; it’s more about having having open-ended attention and being ready to spring into action as the moment requires.