March 5, 2025 • 28 mins
Access the S.T.O.P. Plan here, Friend.
This is a free resource to support your journey toward a more sustainable rhythm of life
Welcome to another episode of the Disrupting Burnout podcast where we give you the strategies for pouring out purpose without burnout. I am Dr. Patrice Buckner Jackson, but you can call me PBJ.
Are you struggling to take effective breaks during your workday? Many professionals mistakenly view task switching as a form of rest, but this episode unravels the truth. We explore how genuine micro breaks can lead to a healthier, more productive work rhythm. Experts reveal that knowledge workers experience about 20 interruptions hourly, most of which are self-inflicted! We’ll guide you on creating restorative micro breaks that fit seamlessly into your daily routine, allowing you to rejuvenate your mind and maintain focus without the exhaustion of constant task switching.
Join us as we discuss the impact of a cluttered workspace, the value of morning pages, and the power of communication in setting boundaries with colleagues and family. Learn to prioritize effectively, ensuring you focus on what matters most each day. By embracing these insights, you equip yourself with tools to prevent burnout and enhance your overall well-being. Don't miss out on this enlightening conversation! Connect with us through our show notes for additional resources and download your stop plan today.
Upgrade to Premium Membership to access the Disrupting Burnout audiobook and other bonus content: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1213895/supporters/new
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Knowledge workers, so those of us who our work is
primarily from our brains andnot physical labor, are
interrupted on an average of 20times per hour, and most of
those interruptions are selfinterruptions.
Maybe sometimes you get anotification on your phone, or
(00:22):
you get a notification throughthe instant message of your
department, or you get anotification on your device.
Maybe somebody knocks on thedoor, maybe you get a phone call
, but the majority of thoseinterruptions are self-inflicted
interruptions.
These are things that we aretelling ourselves that we must
(00:45):
do, have to do, have to takecare of right now.
Hey friends, welcome back toanother episode of the
Disrupting Burnout Podcast,where we are giving you the
strategies for pouring out yourpurpose without continuing to
live through the consequences ofburnout.
(01:07):
Now, friend, you know, lastmonth, in our episodes, we were
focused on resetting your rhythm.
We acknowledge that, asprofessional women, that as
educators, we've lived at arhythm that is not sustainable.
We've lived at a rhythm that isnot sustainable.
Our brains, our bodies, ourhearts, our minds, everything is
(01:28):
constant Go, go, go, go, go, go, go, go, go, go, go go.
And we wonder why we can't rest, we wonder why we feel anxious,
we wonder why we feeloverwhelmed.
So we are learning and walkingthrough what we need to do to
reset to a sustainable rhythm,not to stop serving, not to
(01:54):
escape, not to run away.
But how can we create a liferhythm that allows us to
continue to serve and pour outour heart without suffering
through our lives?
So today, friends, I want totalk to you about what it looks
like to take an effective break,and I've got to tell you the
(02:18):
truth.
This comes from interactingwith women in my community.
Interacting with women in mycommunity recently where I have
said, hey, take a break, andtheir break has been to do a
less demanding task.
So it wasn't a real break.
The break was oh, I can do thisbecause it's fun.
(02:41):
Oh, I can do this because Ienjoy it.
I'll just do this other thinginstead of the hard thing.
Friend, you don't know how totake a break.
You don't know how to take areal break and in order to
adjust the rhythm of your life,you're going to have to
incorporate some micro breaks.
(03:02):
You need daily micro breaks.
You need daily micro breaks.
This is not about taking awhole month off from work.
This is not about escaping andgoing away for a week Every now
and then you probably need to dothat week.
But that's not what we'retalking about right now.
What kind of micro breaks canyou incorporate in your life on
(03:23):
a daily, regular, consistentbasis, so that it becomes a part
of your life rhythm to stop andtake a real break?
What you have been calling abreak is actually task switching
(03:43):
.
Now, friend, I know we've haddiscussions about multitasking.
Right, there's a differencebetween multitasking and task
switching.
So as I was preparing for thispodcast conversation, I found
and y'all know I've been againstmultitasking.
I've been telling you youcannot effectively multitask.
(04:06):
But I learned something alittle bit deeper.
What I learned in my research ismultitasking is when you can do
something that's so deeplyingrained in you that you don't
have to really directly,cognitively, think deeply about
it, and then you add one morething to it.
(04:26):
So, for example, if you aredriving to work and you drive to
work every day, you drive thatsame route to work every day.
Some days you get there and youdidn't even have to think about
what turns to make because youhave driven that same route so
long.
While you are driving to work,you may talk to a friend.
(04:49):
You may listen to a book onaudio.
You may listen to a podcast.
You are multitasking becauseyou are doing two tasks that
work well together, but at leastone of those tasks is so deeply
ingrained that you don't haveto think about it, right?
(05:10):
So it is possible to multitaskwhen you think about it that way
, but that is still not a break.
It's still not a break.
So if that's multitasking, it'sstill not a break.
So if that's multitasking, whatis task switching?
Pbj, I can't stop.
I don't have time to stop.
(05:32):
If I stop, all of this fallsapart.
We're short-staffed.
I don't have anybody that cantake my place at work.
I don't have support at home orat work to stop.
Friends, if any of thesethoughts come to mind when you
think about taking a break, youare the person who needs to stop
the most.
(05:53):
I want to offer you our stopplan Simple.
I want you to use the samestrategies and wisdom and skills
that you use at work, and I'mgoing to guide you to using
those strategies to plan microbreaks.
I'm not talking about a month'ssabbatical, but can you
(06:15):
incorporate micro breaks intoyour life as a regular rhythm of
rest so that while you areserving, while you are giving,
you can have moments of revivalso that you can live the life
you're living sustainably.
Friend, you need to grab thisstop plan.
(06:36):
Make sure to click the link inthe show notes or wherever
you're watching or listening tothis, so that you can get what
you need right now.
It can't wait.
I know you do a wonderful job,but people don't know what it
costs you to be you, and youknow what the cost is for you.
It's time to stop.
(06:56):
Grab the plan today.
Okay, task switching is whenyou're working on one thing and
you think, oh, I need to put ina grocery order so that it will
show up at the door by the timeI get home.
Or oh, I need to put in this umfood order so that it will show
up for lunch, so I'll be ableto eat today.
(07:17):
Or let me stop and check onthis Facebook post to see if
anybody commented.
Or oh, oh gosh, I forgot tocall Susan and let her know A, b
and C, so let me stop what I'mdoing and call Susan.
And it goes on, and on, and on,and on and on.
Task switching is going from onespecific thing that you're
(07:39):
working on to another and maybeswitching back, or maybe
switching to another thing andanother thing and another thing.
Most of us are drowning in taskswitching on a daily basis and
you're telling yourself you tooka break, but really it's task
switching.
So you went from the thing thatwas frustrating you, the thing
(08:00):
that may be uncomfortable, thething that you desire less to do
, and you just went to somethingelse to do.
It may be something that'seasier for you, you may not have
to think as deeply about it,but you went to something else
to do, something else for yourbrain to process.
So I want you to think abouthow can you decrease or
(08:27):
eliminate as much as possible.
Now, friend, listen, I know youlive a real life with a real job
and real demands, and Iunderstand the demands of the
workplace.
But I want you to think of,instead of thinking, what you
can't do.
I want you to come from theperspective of what can be done,
(08:47):
because every little bit helps.
So, as we're having thisconversation, don't get caught
up in.
Or that won't work for myworkplace, or my boss would
never give me that space, orthat doesn't make sense for me.
I, I want you like my peoplesay, I want you to eat the meat
and spit out the bones.
I want you to take from thisconversation what could actually
(09:11):
work for you, and try it, tryit.
Try something.
Okay, in my research and Iwon't call it research, y'all Am
I Googling?
All right, in my Googling, whatI found?
There's a Psychology Todayarticle from 2012, and it talks
(09:34):
about task switching and itproposes that task switching
makes us 40% less productive.
Switching makes us 40% lessproductive.
So we tell ourselves, oh, I'mgetting all of these things done
and the reason why I'mswitching is so I can keep my
head above water, I can checkall the boxes, I can get all the
(09:59):
things done.
The way that brains workquickly switching from one task
to another, to another, toanother, with no downtime for
processing it causes the brainto slow down in processing.
It impacts memory, it impactsmood.
So it's not less ability to getit done, but because we are not
(10:23):
collaborating with our brains,we're not working with our
brains in the way that they needto work, we are making
ourselves less productive, up to40% less productive.
It reminds me of what we used toteach our students on campus,
(10:46):
our college students.
Especially during midtermseason or final season, folks
would want to pull all ninersand not sleep for days and live
in the library and all thethings that they thought they
were supposed to do to beproductive students.
And what we would try to letthem know is you will be more
(11:07):
productive if you gave yourbrain the break that it needs.
If someone's trying to write apaper and there it's like
hitting a brick wall, you'retrying your best to write this
paper but you don't feel likeyou can walk away from it
because you're afraid if youwalk away from it, you won't
come back in time and you won'tfinish it in deadline.
I mean, some of this isplanning ahead.
Let's just be honest.
(11:28):
Some of this is okay, all right, you know what I'm saying.
Some of this is planning ahead.
But either way, research showsus that taking the break,
walking away and coming backbecause your brain was able to
restore itself, because yourbrain had a moment to release
(11:50):
toxins, you'll come back and beable to do the work more
efficiently, more effectively,more productively and quicker
and quicker because you'reworking with your brain and
you're working with the way thatbrains work Right.
So we've got to, we've got topractice incorporating true
(12:16):
breaks, not just task switching.
I saw another article written byEmily Knox.
I think this one was maybe 2019.
It was in Medium, and Emilyfound some research that showed
that knowledge workers so thoseof us who our work is primarily
(12:38):
from our brains and not physicallabor labor are interrupted on
an average of 20 times per hour,and most of those interruptions
are self interruptions.
Maybe sometimes you get anotification on your phone, or
you get a notification throughthe instant message of your
(13:00):
department, or you get anotification on your device.
Maybe somebody knocks on thedoor, maybe you get a
notification on your device,maybe somebody knocks on the
door, maybe you get a phone call, but the majority of those
interruptions are self-inflictedinterruptions.
These are things that we aretelling ourselves that we must
do, have to do, have to takecare of right now.
(13:25):
So I want to share a fewthoughts with you about how you
can set yourself up for successin diminishing the amount of
task switching that you're doing, but also taking an effective
break, taking a restorativebreak.
(13:46):
To stop doing the hard thing inorder to do a lighter thing is
not a restorative break, and wemust incorporate micro breaks,
restorative micro breaks, intoour day on a regular basis in
order to adjust our rhythm oflife and be able to sustain
(14:09):
without the consequences ofburnout.
So I've got some suggestionsfor you.
First of all, I want to giveyou some suggestions of how you
can start with you, because themajority of our interruptions,
the majority of our taskswitching, are self-inflicted.
(14:30):
So what are the things you cando for you so that you're not
interrupting yourself as much?
Let's just start on home base.
Okay, let's start there.
First of all, I want you andwe've discussed this before.
I mentioned a book called theArtist Way and there is an
activity described in the bookcalled the Artist Way and it's
(14:53):
called Morning Pages and theauthor encourages and this is
for writers and other artists toencourage flow, right and
creativity.
But I've found that it worksphenomenally for many knowledge
workers, right.
So the author encourages us towrite three pages every morning
(15:20):
of whatever's in your head, likewhatever, everything,
everything's in your head.
It might start with I'm tryingthese morning pages, because I
heard it on PBJ's podcast and Ihaven't read the book, but I'm
just going to do what PBJ saidand I'm going to try it and see
if it works.
This really seems silly.
I don't know what to write andjust keep writing.
(15:41):
Just keep writing.
When I first started theprocess of morning pages, my
good friend, dr Ramona Lawrenceshe's been on the podcast and
she'll be back on the podcastsuggested it and I started
writing.
I really don't know what I'msupposed to be writing.
I'm hoping this will help andnot a waste of time.
Here I am writing my morningpages and, before I knew it,
(16:05):
days into it, I'm writing deepthoughts, deep questions and
answering those questions.
Before I knew it, I was pouringout creative ideas and new
thoughts and new directions formy work.
Before I knew it, I was feelingrelief and starting my day
clear, instead of starting myday full of thoughts and doubts
(16:29):
and questions and plans and allthe things and my morning pages
consisted of.
Here are the things I need tobuy from the grocery store today
.
Or, you know, here are thethoughts that I want to use for
developing, disrupting burnoutinto a course that people can
use.
Or here's what I see coming outof my work and here's what I'm
(16:50):
afraid of.
Here's what I'm worried about.
Here are the questions thatsomeone asked me recently and I
wish I had answered it like thisWhatever is on your mind,
whatever is on your mind tostart your morning by giving
your brain a good release Tojust get it all out on paper.
(17:12):
You don't have to have an answerto it, just to process it, just
to get it out.
So it's just not swimmingaround over and over and over
and over, and I'm sure there'ssome neuroscience behind this.
So for my friends who areneuroscientists or psychologists
or counselors, feel free tochime in to say yes, pbj, this
(17:32):
is why that works.
All I know is it works, itworks.
So, in order to put yourself inthe best position to not
self-sabotage all day long, Iencourage you to start with your
morning pages and just dumpeverything that's in your head
into those three pages as youbegin.
(17:53):
It might seem daunting forthree pages but, friend, listen,
if you keep it up, before youknow it you're going to want to
keep writing.
Okay, so start with yourmorning pages.
Also, throughout the day.
I want you to as things come toyour mind, because I think one
of the reasons why we taskswitch is because we feel like
(18:14):
we're going to forget.
We're going to forget the thingthat we need to do, or that
thing is going to slip my mindand it's here now and I need to
honor it now.
But what you don't realize is,if you go along with the new
thought, you're going to forgetthe last thought, right.
So keep a notebook beside youand a phone or another device is
great, but I've found writingwith my hand has been so
(18:39):
relieving for me, because thereis truly a connection between
what you write with your handand what's in your heart and
what's in your mind.
So I keep a little notebookwith me, or even my iPad with
the pen that works with it, butwrite with your hand.
So you're working on one thingand a stray thought comes in.
(18:59):
Write it down and keep itmoving.
It's still a disruption, butyou have not disrupted yourself
to the point where it's hard toget back to where you were.
So, as you are practicing andtrying to become more familiar
with this process, trying tobecome more effective with
taking effective breaks and lesstask switching, give yourself a
(19:22):
break by writing it down.
Write it down in a place thatyou're going to hold on to, not
just random papers everywhere,but a place you know you're
going to hold on to it and comeback to it when you need it.
Okay, so write the thought down.
Write the thought down.
Next, concerning yourself.
I want you to create anatmosphere that serves you, and
(19:45):
we've already talked aboutdecluttering.
Y'all know how I feel aboutdecluttering and cleaning up
your space.
But, in addition todecluttering, how can you turn
your stuff on Do not disturb?
How can you eliminate thenumber of notifications and
dings and buzzes and rings andknocks that are coming your way
(20:11):
as you are working through yourprimary task?
Y'all, I get it.
There was a day that if yousuggested to me to put my phone
on do not disturb, I would lookat you like you had two heads,
because in my mind I never knewnot just in my mind, it was my
(20:31):
real life and work.
I never knew when the emergencywas coming.
I never knew when the nextthing was happening with a
student or with a staff memberor on my campus.
So I didn't feel like I everhad any freedom or license to
put my phone on do not disturb.
I never felt like I could missa call.
(20:52):
I felt like I had to answerevery call.
So again, I say this toencourage you to incorporate
what you can, because Iunderstand the pressure of
living on call.
I understand the pressure ofliving on call, but don't block
out the little bit that mighthelp.
For example, I keep my phone ondo not disturb.
(21:16):
I have to, I have to.
And sometimes I have some guiltand shame around it because I
feel bad when people are tryingto connect with me and they
can't get me.
And I recognize that if theycan't get me it's probably
because they are not thegreatest need at the moment.
(21:38):
It doesn't mean they don't havea need, but it means that I'm
not the only one that cansatisfy that need and it's not
the greatest need in front of meat this moment.
Right, so I keep my phone on Donot disturb.
With my phone Do not disturb, Ican identify who can get through
.
So I have a favorites list ofpeople that, even when my phone
(22:02):
is on do not disturb, their callis going to come through.
But those folks already know,if you look at the text message
and it says that mynotifications are silenced.
If you call, know that it's aninterruption and that you need
me.
Like that, that it is.
It is something that I shouldput everything down for to come
(22:23):
to you.
Otherwise, I will check my textmessages and I'll check my
missed calls.
I have a few times within theday that I stop to check those
things, but I'm not constantlybeing interrupted by the dings
and the buzzes and the messages,because every one that comes in
is a distraction.
(22:45):
So create an atmosphere thatallows you to not be pulled away
and not be disrupted constantlythroughout the day.
The next thing I want toencourage you to do is
communicate with your people.
That may be your staff members,that may be your boss, that's
family members, that's children,that may be a children's school
(23:07):
.
Help folks know how to get intouch with you.
So if you know your phone isgoing to be on, do not disturb.
Maybe you tell your child'sschool to call your workplace,
call your work number if there'san emergency, not your cell
phone right or with my team andI think I shared this with you
recently.
But with folks who report to me, I always say if you send me an
(23:30):
email, I have at least 24 hoursand on the weekend longer
before I need to respond.
If you send me a text, it meansyou need me today, but it
doesn't have to be this momentso I can finish what I'm doing
before I respond to you.
But I will get to you today.
If you call me, it means I needto drop everything and come to
(23:51):
you right now.
If you pick up the phone andcall me, that means it is that
critical that I need to stop andrespond ASAP.
And what that did was that setparameters and boundaries to let
my folks know what myexpectations were, but it also
protected me from the constantcalls about everything.
(24:13):
So communicate with familymembers, communicate with your
team, with bosses, so that folksknow how to get you and what
you're focused on right, and useyour discretion and judgment to
do that appropriately for yourwork and your workplace.
And finally you've heard me saythis before I want you to
(24:37):
choose the priority of themoment.
You carry so much baggage.
It's weighing you down on adaily basis.
You carry so much baggage it'sweighing you down on a daily
basis.
You wear so many hats.
You're not just a professionalwoman, but you may be a mom.
You may be partnered or married.
(25:00):
You may have communityobligations.
You've got friends.
You've got people that you careabout.
You've got projects.
You may be a student.
There's so many pieces of yourlife and you will always have
your hands full because that'swho you are.
It's just who you are.
You don't make that up, so yourhands will constantly be full.
I want you to practice choosingthe priority of the moment Every
(25:25):
day as you start your day.
Identify this is the toppriority for me today.
If I accomplish this, then Imake room for other things, not
priorities.
The priority One, and if youget through that one, then you
allow more.
(25:46):
And here's the thing Sometimespriorities change so you may
walk in with one priority onyour mind and by the time you
hit your desk, the priority haschanged.
Give yourself grace for thatand focus on the priority of the
moment.
Allow your mind to be whereyour body is.
Put all of the baggage down andpick up the one that is most
(26:10):
pressing, most needed, that youshould focus on right now, and
know that when that prioritychanges, you can put that one
down and pick up the next one.
So no more task switching.
We're going to complete whatwe're focused on as much as
possible.
We're going to eliminatedistractions and disruptions
(26:34):
intentionally as much aspossible.
We are going to stop and giveour brain real breaks, and
that's what we're talking abouton the next episode.
Let's talk about effectivebreaks, restorative breaks, what
really allows your brain torecover so that you can focus
(27:01):
when you come back and be evenmore productive.
All right, listen, friend, asalways.
You know you are powerful, youare significant, you are
brilliant and you are loved.
You deserve a real break, andswitching back and forth all day
(27:22):
long is not giving you what youneed.
It's wearing you out and you'renot even being as productive as
you think.
It's time to do this thing alittle different, friend.
It's time to change.
Alright, I'll see you next week.
Thanks for listening.
Bye now.
Knowledge workers, so those of us who our work is
primarily from our brains andnot physical labor, are
interrupted on an average of 20times per hour, and most of
those interruptions are selfinterruptions.
Maybe sometimes you get anotification on your phone, or
(00:22):
you get a notification throughthe instant message of your
department, or you get anotification on your device.
Maybe somebody knocks on thedoor, maybe you get a phone call
, but the majority of thoseinterruptions are self-inflicted
interruptions.
These are things that we aretelling ourselves that we must
(00:45):
do, have to do, have to takecare of right now.
Hey friends, welcome back toanother episode of the
Disrupting Burnout Podcast,where we are giving you the
strategies for pouring out yourpurpose without continuing to
live through the consequences ofburnout.
(01:07):
Now, friend, you know, lastmonth, in our episodes, we were
focused on resetting your rhythm.
We acknowledge that, asprofessional women, that as
educators, we've lived at arhythm that is not sustainable.
We've lived at a rhythm that isnot sustainable.
Our brains, our bodies, ourhearts, our minds, everything is
(01:28):
constant Go, go, go, go, go, go, go, go, go, go, go go.
And we wonder why we can't rest, we wonder why we feel anxious,
we wonder why we feeloverwhelmed.
So we are learning and walkingthrough what we need to do to
reset to a sustainable rhythm,not to stop serving, not to
(01:54):
escape, not to run away.
But how can we create a liferhythm that allows us to
continue to serve and pour outour heart without suffering
through our lives?
So today, friends, I want totalk to you about what it looks
like to take an effective break,and I've got to tell you the
(02:18):
truth.
This comes from interactingwith women in my community.
Interacting with women in mycommunity recently where I have
said, hey, take a break, andtheir break has been to do a
less demanding task.
So it wasn't a real break.
The break was oh, I can do thisbecause it's fun.
(02:41):
Oh, I can do this because Ienjoy it.
I'll just do this other thinginstead of the hard thing.
Friend, you don't know how totake a break.
You don't know how to take areal break and in order to
adjust the rhythm of your life,you're going to have to
incorporate some micro breaks.
(03:02):
You need daily micro breaks.
You need daily micro breaks.
This is not about taking awhole month off from work.
This is not about escaping andgoing away for a week Every now
and then you probably need to dothat week.
But that's not what we'retalking about right now.
What kind of micro breaks canyou incorporate in your life on
(03:23):
a daily, regular, consistentbasis, so that it becomes a part
of your life rhythm to stop andtake a real break?
What you have been calling abreak is actually task switching
(03:43):
.
Now, friend, I know we've haddiscussions about multitasking.
Right, there's a differencebetween multitasking and task
switching.
So as I was preparing for thispodcast conversation, I found
and y'all know I've been againstmultitasking.
I've been telling you youcannot effectively multitask.
(04:06):
But I learned something alittle bit deeper.
What I learned in my research ismultitasking is when you can do
something that's so deeplyingrained in you that you don't
have to really directly,cognitively, think deeply about
it, and then you add one morething to it.
(04:26):
So, for example, if you aredriving to work and you drive to
work every day, you drive thatsame route to work every day.
Some days you get there and youdidn't even have to think about
what turns to make because youhave driven that same route so
long.
While you are driving to work,you may talk to a friend.
(04:49):
You may listen to a book onaudio.
You may listen to a podcast.
You are multitasking becauseyou are doing two tasks that
work well together, but at leastone of those tasks is so deeply
ingrained that you don't haveto think about it, right?
(05:10):
So it is possible to multitaskwhen you think about it that way
, but that is still not a break.
It's still not a break.
So if that's multitasking, it'sstill not a break.
So if that's multitasking, whatis task switching?
Pbj, I can't stop.
I don't have time to stop.
(05:32):
If I stop, all of this fallsapart.
We're short-staffed.
I don't have anybody that cantake my place at work.
I don't have support at home orat work to stop.
Friends, if any of thesethoughts come to mind when you
think about taking a break, youare the person who needs to stop
the most.
(05:53):
I want to offer you our stopplan Simple.
I want you to use the samestrategies and wisdom and skills
that you use at work, and I'mgoing to guide you to using
those strategies to plan microbreaks.
I'm not talking about a month'ssabbatical, but can you
(06:15):
incorporate micro breaks intoyour life as a regular rhythm of
rest so that while you areserving, while you are giving,
you can have moments of revivalso that you can live the life
you're living sustainably.
Friend, you need to grab thisstop plan.
(06:36):
Make sure to click the link inthe show notes or wherever
you're watching or listening tothis, so that you can get what
you need right now.
It can't wait.
I know you do a wonderful job,but people don't know what it
costs you to be you, and youknow what the cost is for you.
It's time to stop.
(06:56):
Grab the plan today.
Okay, task switching is whenyou're working on one thing and
you think, oh, I need to put ina grocery order so that it will
show up at the door by the timeI get home.
Or oh, I need to put in this umfood order so that it will show
up for lunch, so I'll be ableto eat today.
(07:17):
Or let me stop and check onthis Facebook post to see if
anybody commented.
Or oh, oh gosh, I forgot tocall Susan and let her know A, b
and C, so let me stop what I'mdoing and call Susan.
And it goes on, and on, and on,and on and on.
Task switching is going from onespecific thing that you're
(07:39):
working on to another and maybeswitching back, or maybe
switching to another thing andanother thing and another thing.
Most of us are drowning in taskswitching on a daily basis and
you're telling yourself you tooka break, but really it's task
switching.
So you went from the thing thatwas frustrating you, the thing
(08:00):
that may be uncomfortable, thething that you desire less to do
, and you just went to somethingelse to do.
It may be something that'seasier for you, you may not have
to think as deeply about it,but you went to something else
to do, something else for yourbrain to process.
So I want you to think abouthow can you decrease or
(08:27):
eliminate as much as possible.
Now, friend, listen, I know youlive a real life with a real job
and real demands, and Iunderstand the demands of the
workplace.
But I want you to think of,instead of thinking, what you
can't do.
I want you to come from theperspective of what can be done,
(08:47):
because every little bit helps.
So, as we're having thisconversation, don't get caught
up in.
Or that won't work for myworkplace, or my boss would
never give me that space, orthat doesn't make sense for me.
I, I want you like my peoplesay, I want you to eat the meat
and spit out the bones.
I want you to take from thisconversation what could actually
(09:11):
work for you, and try it, tryit.
Try something.
Okay, in my research and Iwon't call it research, y'all Am
I Googling?
All right, in my Googling, whatI found?
There's a Psychology Todayarticle from 2012, and it talks
(09:34):
about task switching and itproposes that task switching
makes us 40% less productive.
Switching makes us 40% lessproductive.
So we tell ourselves, oh, I'mgetting all of these things done
and the reason why I'mswitching is so I can keep my
head above water, I can checkall the boxes, I can get all the
(09:59):
things done.
The way that brains workquickly switching from one task
to another, to another, toanother, with no downtime for
processing it causes the brainto slow down in processing.
It impacts memory, it impactsmood.
So it's not less ability to getit done, but because we are not
(10:23):
collaborating with our brains,we're not working with our
brains in the way that they needto work, we are making
ourselves less productive, up to40% less productive.
It reminds me of what we used toteach our students on campus,
(10:46):
our college students.
Especially during midtermseason or final season, folks
would want to pull all ninersand not sleep for days and live
in the library and all thethings that they thought they
were supposed to do to beproductive students.
And what we would try to letthem know is you will be more
(11:07):
productive if you gave yourbrain the break that it needs.
If someone's trying to write apaper and there it's like
hitting a brick wall, you'retrying your best to write this
paper but you don't feel likeyou can walk away from it
because you're afraid if youwalk away from it, you won't
come back in time and you won'tfinish it in deadline.
I mean, some of this isplanning ahead.
Let's just be honest.
(11:28):
Some of this is okay, all right, you know what I'm saying.
Some of this is planning ahead.
But either way, research showsus that taking the break,
walking away and coming backbecause your brain was able to
restore itself, because yourbrain had a moment to release
(11:50):
toxins, you'll come back and beable to do the work more
efficiently, more effectively,more productively and quicker
and quicker because you'reworking with your brain and
you're working with the way thatbrains work Right.
So we've got to, we've got topractice incorporating true
(12:16):
breaks, not just task switching.
I saw another article written byEmily Knox.
I think this one was maybe 2019.
It was in Medium, and Emilyfound some research that showed
that knowledge workers so thoseof us who our work is primarily
(12:38):
from our brains and not physicallabor labor are interrupted on
an average of 20 times per hour,and most of those interruptions
are self interruptions.
Maybe sometimes you get anotification on your phone, or
you get a notification throughthe instant message of your
(13:00):
department, or you get anotification on your device.
Maybe somebody knocks on thedoor, maybe you get a
notification on your device,maybe somebody knocks on the
door, maybe you get a phone call, but the majority of those
interruptions are self-inflictedinterruptions.
These are things that we aretelling ourselves that we must
do, have to do, have to takecare of right now.
(13:25):
So I want to share a fewthoughts with you about how you
can set yourself up for successin diminishing the amount of
task switching that you're doing, but also taking an effective
break, taking a restorativebreak.
(13:46):
To stop doing the hard thing inorder to do a lighter thing is
not a restorative break, and wemust incorporate micro breaks,
restorative micro breaks, intoour day on a regular basis in
order to adjust our rhythm oflife and be able to sustain
(14:09):
without the consequences ofburnout.
So I've got some suggestionsfor you.
First of all, I want to giveyou some suggestions of how you
can start with you, because themajority of our interruptions,
the majority of our taskswitching, are self-inflicted.
(14:30):
So what are the things you cando for you so that you're not
interrupting yourself as much?
Let's just start on home base.
Okay, let's start there.
First of all, I want you andwe've discussed this before.
I mentioned a book called theArtist Way and there is an
activity described in the bookcalled the Artist Way and it's
(14:53):
called Morning Pages and theauthor encourages and this is
for writers and other artists toencourage flow, right and
creativity.
But I've found that it worksphenomenally for many knowledge
workers, right.
So the author encourages us towrite three pages every morning
(15:20):
of whatever's in your head, likewhatever, everything,
everything's in your head.
It might start with I'm tryingthese morning pages, because I
heard it on PBJ's podcast and Ihaven't read the book, but I'm
just going to do what PBJ saidand I'm going to try it and see
if it works.
This really seems silly.
I don't know what to write andjust keep writing.
(15:41):
Just keep writing.
When I first started theprocess of morning pages, my
good friend, dr Ramona Lawrenceshe's been on the podcast and
she'll be back on the podcastsuggested it and I started
writing.
I really don't know what I'msupposed to be writing.
I'm hoping this will help andnot a waste of time.
Here I am writing my morningpages and, before I knew it,
(16:05):
days into it, I'm writing deepthoughts, deep questions and
answering those questions.
Before I knew it, I was pouringout creative ideas and new
thoughts and new directions formy work.
Before I knew it, I was feelingrelief and starting my day
clear, instead of starting myday full of thoughts and doubts
(16:29):
and questions and plans and allthe things and my morning pages
consisted of.
Here are the things I need tobuy from the grocery store today
.
Or, you know, here are thethoughts that I want to use for
developing, disrupting burnoutinto a course that people can
use.
Or here's what I see coming outof my work and here's what I'm
(16:50):
afraid of.
Here's what I'm worried about.
Here are the questions thatsomeone asked me recently and I
wish I had answered it like thisWhatever is on your mind,
whatever is on your mind tostart your morning by giving
your brain a good release Tojust get it all out on paper.
(17:12):
You don't have to have an answerto it, just to process it, just
to get it out.
So it's just not swimmingaround over and over and over
and over, and I'm sure there'ssome neuroscience behind this.
So for my friends who areneuroscientists or psychologists
or counselors, feel free tochime in to say yes, pbj, this
(17:32):
is why that works.
All I know is it works, itworks.
So, in order to put yourself inthe best position to not
self-sabotage all day long, Iencourage you to start with your
morning pages and just dumpeverything that's in your head
into those three pages as youbegin.
(17:53):
It might seem daunting forthree pages but, friend, listen,
if you keep it up, before youknow it you're going to want to
keep writing.
Okay, so start with yourmorning pages.
Also, throughout the day.
I want you to as things come toyour mind, because I think one
of the reasons why we taskswitch is because we feel like
(18:14):
we're going to forget.
We're going to forget the thingthat we need to do, or that
thing is going to slip my mindand it's here now and I need to
honor it now.
But what you don't realize is,if you go along with the new
thought, you're going to forgetthe last thought, right.
So keep a notebook beside youand a phone or another device is
great, but I've found writingwith my hand has been so
(18:39):
relieving for me, because thereis truly a connection between
what you write with your handand what's in your heart and
what's in your mind.
So I keep a little notebookwith me, or even my iPad with
the pen that works with it, butwrite with your hand.
So you're working on one thingand a stray thought comes in.
(18:59):
Write it down and keep itmoving.
It's still a disruption, butyou have not disrupted yourself
to the point where it's hard toget back to where you were.
So, as you are practicing andtrying to become more familiar
with this process, trying tobecome more effective with
taking effective breaks and lesstask switching, give yourself a
(19:22):
break by writing it down.
Write it down in a place thatyou're going to hold on to, not
just random papers everywhere,but a place you know you're
going to hold on to it and comeback to it when you need it.
Okay, so write the thought down.
Write the thought down.
Next, concerning yourself.
I want you to create anatmosphere that serves you, and
(19:45):
we've already talked aboutdecluttering.
Y'all know how I feel aboutdecluttering and cleaning up
your space.
But, in addition todecluttering, how can you turn
your stuff on Do not disturb?
How can you eliminate thenumber of notifications and
dings and buzzes and rings andknocks that are coming your way
(20:11):
as you are working through yourprimary task?
Y'all, I get it.
There was a day that if yousuggested to me to put my phone
on do not disturb, I would lookat you like you had two heads,
because in my mind I never knewnot just in my mind, it was my
(20:31):
real life and work.
I never knew when the emergencywas coming.
I never knew when the nextthing was happening with a
student or with a staff memberor on my campus.
So I didn't feel like I everhad any freedom or license to
put my phone on do not disturb.
I never felt like I could missa call.
(20:52):
I felt like I had to answerevery call.
So again, I say this toencourage you to incorporate
what you can, because Iunderstand the pressure of
living on call.
I understand the pressure ofliving on call, but don't block
out the little bit that mighthelp.
For example, I keep my phone ondo not disturb.
(21:16):
I have to, I have to.
And sometimes I have some guiltand shame around it because I
feel bad when people are tryingto connect with me and they
can't get me.
And I recognize that if theycan't get me it's probably
because they are not thegreatest need at the moment.
(21:38):
It doesn't mean they don't havea need, but it means that I'm
not the only one that cansatisfy that need and it's not
the greatest need in front of meat this moment.
Right, so I keep my phone on Donot disturb.
With my phone Do not disturb, Ican identify who can get through
.
So I have a favorites list ofpeople that, even when my phone
(22:02):
is on do not disturb, their callis going to come through.
But those folks already know,if you look at the text message
and it says that mynotifications are silenced.
If you call, know that it's aninterruption and that you need
me.
Like that, that it is.
It is something that I shouldput everything down for to come
(22:23):
to you.
Otherwise, I will check my textmessages and I'll check my
missed calls.
I have a few times within theday that I stop to check those
things, but I'm not constantlybeing interrupted by the dings
and the buzzes and the messages,because every one that comes in
is a distraction.
(22:45):
So create an atmosphere thatallows you to not be pulled away
and not be disrupted constantlythroughout the day.
The next thing I want toencourage you to do is
communicate with your people.
That may be your staff members,that may be your boss, that's
family members, that's children,that may be a children's school
(23:07):
.
Help folks know how to get intouch with you.
So if you know your phone isgoing to be on, do not disturb.
Maybe you tell your child'sschool to call your workplace,
call your work number if there'san emergency, not your cell
phone right or with my team andI think I shared this with you
recently.
But with folks who report to me, I always say if you send me an
(23:30):
email, I have at least 24 hoursand on the weekend longer
before I need to respond.
If you send me a text, it meansyou need me today, but it
doesn't have to be this momentso I can finish what I'm doing
before I respond to you.
But I will get to you today.
If you call me, it means I needto drop everything and come to
(23:51):
you right now.
If you pick up the phone andcall me, that means it is that
critical that I need to stop andrespond ASAP.
And what that did was that setparameters and boundaries to let
my folks know what myexpectations were, but it also
protected me from the constantcalls about everything.
(24:13):
So communicate with familymembers, communicate with your
team, with bosses, so that folksknow how to get you and what
you're focused on right, and useyour discretion and judgment to
do that appropriately for yourwork and your workplace.
And finally you've heard me saythis before I want you to
(24:37):
choose the priority of themoment.
You carry so much baggage.
It's weighing you down on adaily basis.
You carry so much baggage it'sweighing you down on a daily
basis.
You wear so many hats.
You're not just a professionalwoman, but you may be a mom.
You may be partnered or married.
(25:00):
You may have communityobligations.
You've got friends.
You've got people that you careabout.
You've got projects.
You may be a student.
There's so many pieces of yourlife and you will always have
your hands full because that'swho you are.
It's just who you are.
You don't make that up, so yourhands will constantly be full.
I want you to practice choosingthe priority of the moment Every
(25:25):
day as you start your day.
Identify this is the toppriority for me today.
If I accomplish this, then Imake room for other things, not
priorities.
The priority One, and if youget through that one, then you
allow more.
(25:46):
And here's the thing Sometimespriorities change so you may
walk in with one priority onyour mind and by the time you
hit your desk, the priority haschanged.
Give yourself grace for thatand focus on the priority of the
moment.
Allow your mind to be whereyour body is.
Put all of the baggage down andpick up the one that is most
(26:10):
pressing, most needed, that youshould focus on right now, and
know that when that prioritychanges, you can put that one
down and pick up the next one.
So no more task switching.
We're going to complete whatwe're focused on as much as
possible.
We're going to eliminatedistractions and disruptions
(26:34):
intentionally as much aspossible.
We are going to stop and giveour brain real breaks, and
that's what we're talking abouton the next episode.
Let's talk about effectivebreaks, restorative breaks, what
really allows your brain torecover so that you can focus
(27:01):
when you come back and be evenmore productive.
All right, listen, friend, asalways.
You know you are powerful, youare significant, you are
brilliant and you are loved.
You deserve a real break, andswitching back and forth all day
(27:22):
long is not giving you what youneed.
It's wearing you out and you'renot even being as productive as
you think.
It's time to do this thing alittle different, friend.
It's time to change.
Alright, I'll see you next week.
Thanks for listening.
Bye now.
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