Multitasking Vs. Listening: Who Wins?

Many of us believe we are masters at the art of multitasking. However, what you probably don’t realize is that you are terrible at it. 

As we walk around college campuses, work, and enter coffee shops, we see people who are “multitasking” all around us. But what these people don’t realize is that they aren’t actually multitasking at all, they are task-switching.

The few studies across the country including one at Stanford University reveal that the human brain cannot perform more than one task at a time and that it is physiologically impossible to do so.

A great example of this is the lady who attracted national attention for falling into a fountain at the mall while texting. 

The lady who fell into the fountain may have been walking to the mall parking lot to return home. But once she responded to her text message, she switched tasks… and then took an unexpected bath in a mall fountain.

As you sit down to study and then start listening to music, watch YouTube videos, check your email, and watch TV – you are not actually studying at all. Effective multitasking is not only impossible; it is a practice that makes you significantly slower. PBS elaborates on this more in their video: DigitalNation

Multitasking and distractions dramatically hinder our listening ability. Before we become effective listeners, me must first acknowledge that we can only listen by eliminating distractions and focus our complete attention on one task.

Our Most Used Skill, but the Most Belittled

Listening is the most undervalued human skill. As a society, we often believe that listening is an involuntary human ability, like blinking or breathing. However, that is anything but true.

We learn early on how to speak, write, and how to read. But have you ever had any formal training in listening? Most have not. This is compelling as there are studies that reveal we listen more than we write, talk, and read combined!

My interest in the study of listening was spurred in my Effective Listening course at St. Cloud State University. It is in that class where I learned that listening effectively is rather difficult and is a voluntary skill (I will elaborate more on this in a future post).

 “How many of you in this room registered for this class to earn an easy A?” asked my instructor, “And how many of you scoffed at the idea that St. Cloud State University offered a class devoted to the study of listening?” In my case, the latter question was somewhat accurate. 

When I registered for the course on Effective Listening, my parents asked, “Is that really a class?” Yes, it is. And how much I have gained from this class took me by surprise. In this blog, I will cover several areas that I learned in my listening class, interview experts and students.

So, why does listening matter? What is the importance of effective listening? Are we good listeners; and how do we become one? All these questions and more will be answered in this blog, Listen Up!

Nick