Multitasking.
Many people think that the ultimate multitasking is watching a movie while talking on the phone, while doing homework, while changing a diaper. "Multitasking" has basically has been defined as how many unrelated activities one can do at once. But that is the wrong way to multitask. It creates shoddy work and drives you crazy.
Good multitasking is accomplishing many related things by doing only one. It is not to to be able split focus, but to intensify it on a single task that has multiple outlets.
To make this more clear, a good multitasker crafts a single e-mail to send to multiple people at once. Though the reasons may vary from person to person, a good multitasker focuses on the single e-mail so that it is applicable and substantive to all recipients. A traditional multitasker rushes and sends each person an individual e-mail. Similar result but the good multitasker accomplished much more than the traditional because the single e-mail was quicker to create even with the extra thought put into it.
The trick to good and true multitasking is to take a moment with each task you have and consider how you can better capitalize on it without adding much extra work. Don't grow the input grow the output.
A great example would be a blog post. Normally a person would simply write a blog and that would be that. But a blog can so easily be made more. As you write the blog you could prepare to download everything you write so that you can put it into a book. Now, the action of writing a blog doubles as the action of writing a book. You have just doubled your time by doubling the output of a single action. You are able to multitask by, more carefully planning a single task.
Another example might be homework. While studying for finals a student may work dozens of problems and examples in order to learn a topic before the test. The trouble is, that once a problem is finished the scratch paper is thrown in the trash and the only benefit was that single person knowing the material a little better. But if that student could just set up a camera while they do the examples they now have the basis for an online education program. So instead of just doing homework they are building an resource for themselves and others to use. The output and value from that time on homework can now be grown exponentially, especially if the student begins to be a followed YouTube tutor.
For whatever project you undertake try to see how you can optimize and increase the output without adding more input. This takes a little creativity but it is still a very simple way to increase the output of your time.
When reading a book, read to your kids. When getting in shape, learn a sport. When driving down the road listen, to an audio book. These are all very basic ways to increase output without more input.
In order to multitask well one doesn't have to become a cartoon character and work at a hyperspeed to accomplish ten different things. You just have to plan ahead a little in order to accomplish n things by doing only one. Then you get all of results with none of the drawbacks which come with traditional "multitasking."
