For a lot of executives, the typical workday goes down something like this. You start by reading e-mail and news articles. Then there may be a meeting about administrative stuff, followed by another meeting that’s all about marketing and another one for interviewing a job candidate. More e-mails, a few voicemails, maybe a quick trip to Twitter, then it’s off to a meeting with someone from the finance department.
And so it goes, all day -- shifting from one context to another. It’s no wonder that by the end of the day, you’re mentally drained.
I choose death before dishonor
--Five Finger Death Punch, "Death Before Dishonor"
When you focus on one particular type of task, challenge, or information set, then switch to something completely different, you’re shifting contexts. Sometimes, the transitions are huge and jarring. Other times, you don’t even notice them. You’re e-mailing a client when a friend calls, asking for advice on a business matter. You counsel your friend, then go back to your e-mail. Without ever realizing it, you’re shifted contexts twice within a few minutes.
Frequent context shifts throughout the day can be extremely distracting and impair your ability to concentrate. Worse, over time they can seriously deplete your brain’s ability to concentrate and make decisions. Ever wondered why, no matter how much you slept the night before, you can’t focus on anything by 4 p.m.? It’s because you’ve been shifting all day between meetings, e-mails, voicemails, hallway conversations, phone calls, and different types of tasks all day.
With everything you do, your brain transfers information you’ve previously encoded from long-term to short-term memory, to help you out. But short-term memory can only store between five and nine things at once. So when you shift contexts, your brain has to hustle, transferring whatever is currently in short-term memory into long-term memory because there’s only so much space for new stuff. Think of your short-term memory as an overbooked flight. The plane isn’t going anywhere until some passengers give up their seats.
And so, throughout the day, the more you shift contexts and the more unrelated those contexts are, the harder your brain works to transfer, store, and flush information out of short-term memory. Adjusting your brain to new contexts is difficult to do on its own. Multiply the effort by the dozens of context shifts (if not more) that you make during a long workday, and it’s no wonder you can’t decide what to eat for dinner. Lots of context shifting also adds stress, and the more stressed you feel, the harder it is to focus on a new task. Downward spiral, here you come.
You can’t always control the amount or type of context shifts in a given day, but you can manage them. Taking notes helps you shift contexts later. When I add a meeting to my calendar, I always try to add background information about whom I’m meeting with, what the meeting’s goals are, the meeting address and driving directions (if it’s off-site), and so on. That way, I’ve got some back story right when I need it to ease me into that context shift.
It also helps to structure your day, when possible, so that tasks or meetings with similar contexts are arranged consecutively on your calendar. If I know I’ll need to have three meetings in a given week that are similar in focus, I’ll try to schedule them back-to-back, so I don’t have to shift in and out of contexts as much. Or if I’ve just gotten off the phone with someone and there’s an action I need to take as a result of our call, I’ll try to do it right then, to avoid having to shift back to that context later (and wonder what the heck I was supposed to do).
Wait until the dust settles
You live, you learn
--Alanis Morissette, "You Learn"
E-mail is a notorious context shifter (at least in my mind). Often, each e-mail is about something different from those that came before it or after. Not only that, many people get alerted whenever a new e-mail arrives. For example, you see a preview of the message pop up on your screen while you’re doing something completely unrelated, such as working on a presentation. You get intrigued by the preview, click over to e-mail, answer it, see another message that arouses your curiosity, read it, answer it, and before long, you’ve shifted contexts. A lot.
If you’re the easily distracted type, maybe it’s time to change your e-mail settings so your computer doesn’t chime or preview each new message. Instead, when you reach a stopping point in your work, you can always check out what’s new in your inbox.
Ultimately, shifting between your e-mail and your work projects only a few times a day, instead of dozens, makes you more efficient and focused and minimizes brain strain. Of course, context shifts aren’t always bad. Sometimes, your brain needs a break from what it’s been so focused on. Resting your brain in between challenging tasks helps you recharge your mental battery and embark on the next task refreshed. The trick is to think of these breaks -- whether it’s taking a walk or diving into the Twitterverse -- as rewards for work accomplished, rather than as ways to avoid work.
The most important thing you can do is dedicate time for yourself every day, even if it’s just 10 or 15 minutes. Block it out on your calendar so no one can claim it. Use that time to clear your mind, calm your senses, organize your tasks, and think beyond what’s happening in the moment. Think about where you are in your goals now, where you want to be later, and what’s standing in your way. When you do that, you’ll be better prepared for the ultimate context shift -- from the here and now to the future.
