Every time I multi-task, I feel cool for a few minutes and then later realize I shouldn’t have multi-tasked. In that way it is like eating candy or any other bad habit. It’s fun to tell people you are multi-tasking, but actually doing it is pretty useless. Someone watching a multi-tasker can easily see that they are getting much less done, but are in somewhat of a trance-like state.

This is not to say that we can’t do multiple things in sequence, in organized durations of time(as short as required), but haphazardly packing 4 tasks into a 1-hour period and hoping they all come out finished at the end of the hour is about as likely as the word “asdfghjkl” getting added to the dictionary.

Your point about how everything distracts a multi-tasker is duly noted.

They will probably then justify this by creating a self-belief that they are good at multitasking and capable of juggling several things at once.

The desktop inbox applies to both my physical inbox and the workspace on my computer. By keeping notes, files, and papers relevant to upcoming tasks plainly visible, I am always mindful of them until they have been processed. Turning off technology has probably been the biggest contributor to productivity gains. Nothing is more distracting than having emails, instant messages, and tweets streaming in while you’re attempting to work.