Happy Sunday Everyone:
As I get older, and hopefully wiser, I’m reminded of the universal truths that seem elementary but in fact would serve me well to put on a reminder loop in my brain. One of those universal truths is that multi-tasking doesn’t really work. Yes, you might be one of a 100 people that do it better than most, but I’m 100% not one of those rare birds. The sooner I accept this fact, the better I’ll be at everything I put my mind to.
I had one of our company calls two weeks ago. I interviewed one of my best friends, JJ Mazzo. JJ would get my “most elevated” award in an 18-month period of time. He’s always impressed me but the past 18 months I’ve seen him turn into an absolute killer on so many fronts. He runs a division, he still does his own production, he started a new coaching company, he wrote a book, he lost 50lbs, and he still manages to be an amazing father to his 2 daughters, and a decent husband (joking here).
One my questions to him was about his schedule. Wasn’t meant to be the “so, what’s your morning routine”, it was about his actual schedule. We ended up on the topic of multitasking. He had me go through an exercise (mind you there are 1500 people on this call), he first asked me to count to 20 as fast as I could. He then asked me to recite the alphabet as fast as I could. He then asked me to start with the 1 and A and marry them together as fast as I could i.e. 1a, 2b, 3c, 4d…..I’d highly recommend you stop reading and attempt this exercise. It brings to light what happens to your brain when you start multi-tasking. As you keep going, your brain gets slower, and you start making more mistakes. When you’re on a call with this many people, you also have the opportunity to look like an idiot, which I did.
So, there is multitasking, which doesn’t work, but there is also the flow of your day. JJ has his days mapped out around activities that keep him in flow. We’ve all heard the concept of theme days, or theme hours, the question is how many of us actually put them into place. JJ has his meeting days on Monday, he has calls on Tuesday, he has coaching on Wednesday, he has recruiting on Thursday, and then Friday he has 5 hours cut out for strategic thinking on all of his various businesses. You might say “sounds good but the practicality is BS”. It’s not about 100% perfection; it’s about the intentionality of scheduling your time to keep you in flow. I have days (all the time), where I have a lead call, then a sales call with our division, then a finance call, then a training on zoom, etc., literally back-to-back w/ zero minutes in between. There is no way to get in “flow” by that kind of a calendar. I control my calendar, it’s up to me to what it looks like, same goes for most of you.
At the most basic level, remind yourself when you’re reading emails, jumping on a call, sitting on a zoom, all at the same time, you’re likely accomplishing nothing. Go all in on what you’re doing, make it count, and move on. If it’s not worth your time, don’t do it at all. On a more strategic level, map your days out to stay in the sweet spot of what you’re doing for hours at a time. We’re all so much better when we’re in a flow state. I looked up “flow state,” here is what it says, “Flow state—often called being “in the zone”, is a mental state where you’re completely absorbed in what you’re doing. Time seems to pass quickly, distractions fade, and your focus, energy, and performance feel effortless”. That’s a win win win. You’re enjoying what you’re doing, you’re likely 10X more impactful, and the people on the receiving end are getting the best of you.
Side note, JJ’s book is called “Perseverance”. I normally ask permission if I write about someone. I didn’t ask for JJ’s permission on any of this. We’re close enough where he can forgive me if needed!
You might consider your calendar today for the week ahead!