In "A Multitasker’s Guide to Regaining Focus," published by The New York Times on March 11, 2024, Anna Borges explores the pervasive habit of multitasking and its impacts on focus and productivity. Borges, leveraging insights from experts like neuropsychologist Nicole Byers and informatics professor Gloria Mark, dismantles the myth of multitasking as a beneficial skill. Instead, she presents it as a challenge to effective cognitive functioning and well-being.

The article begins by questioning the ubiquity of multitasking in modern life, from texting in traffic to juggling chores and entertainment. Byers suggests that our tendency to multitask stems from a desire to avoid boredom and societal pressures that valorize this capability. However, Borges clarifies that true multitasking—performing multiple tasks simultaneously with equal focus—is a misnomer. What we often consider multitasking is actually task-switching, which burdens our cognitive control network, hampers executive function, and necessitates constant reorientation of our mental focus.

Through the analogy of cooking while distracted by a phone call, Borges illustrates how task-switching can erase our "mental whiteboard," leading to inefficiencies and errors. Stanford professor Anthony Wagner and others highlight the "switch cost" associated with multitasking, including decreased speed, accuracy, and increased cognitive demand. These costs not only impair task performance but can also elevate stress levels, negatively affect mood, and diminish our overall perception of the task at hand.

To combat the drawbacks of multitasking, Borges recommends practicing monotasking—focusing on a single task at a time. This approach involves self-observation to identify unconscious task-switching, starting with short periods of focused activity, and gradually increasing the duration. Monotasking can leverage one's peak mental performance times, which typically occur in midmorning and midafternoon.

However, Borges acknowledges that some level of task-switching is inevitable. She advises being intentional about when and how to multitask, suggesting strategies such as sticking to tasks that match one's strengths, assessing the risks associated with divided attention, and choosing optimal moments for task-switching to minimize redundancy and errors.

In conclusion, "A Multitasker’s Guide to Regaining Focus" challenges the valorization of multitasking and offers practical advice for enhancing focus and productivity through monotasking. Borges underscores the importance of mindful task management and the benefits of pairing enjoyable activities with less pleasant ones as a form of positive reinforcement.