Why You Should Monotask Especially Reading

In this multitasking world, it is vital that we monotask essential activities like reading.

With all the technologies around us, our modern world encourages a lot of multitasking. Our brains have evolved in such a way that multitasking is not a productive tool. So why do we still do it? We argue that it’s for time optimization. In his book The Twelve Monotasks, Thatcher Wine breaks down the reason for monotasking in a better understandable way.

Monotask:

In his book, Thatcher Wine points out that a computer, even though it looks like multitasking, is actually doing one job at a time and shifts between multiple tasks really fast and gives us a mirage that it’s multitasking. Also, computers are designed for multitasking. He notes that our pre-frontal cortex is a bottleneck and an excessive flow of information causes a traffic jam. The social media we use is centered on getting past this traffic jam and gaining our attention. In his book, he points out 12 monotasking that will improve our quality of life if done as a monotask.

Reading:

Reading a book can calm oneself and decrease anxiety. To sit in a place and to read a book itself is a meditation. The average time spent reading a book has reduced a lot in recent times, and Thatcher Wine insists on the importance of reading books. He states that we should read physical books as much as possible. Physical books are better suited to our brains and are distraction-free If you lock your phone and other electronic devices in another room and sit with a physical book, then the distraction is minimized.

For a person like me, you might prefer e-books for their convenience. Thatcher Wine recommends putting the device in airplane mode and reading and fixing a spot for reading every day, which will minimize distraction. He recommends reading for 20 minutes every day and to monotask it. Strictly no other activity apart from reading in those 20 minutes will increase your likelihood of living by 25 percent.

Steps To Help:

Thatcher Wine recommends some reinforcement techniques to improve reading 1) Read with others. Ask anyone from your family or friends to read with you at the same time 2) Wake up a little earlier and read 3) Join a book club, Ask for recommendations for reading 4) Have a book with you at all times. Read it whenever you find spare time 5) Note that you are not wasting your time when you are reading

Now it is your time to practice the monotask of reading. Read a book or magazine for 20 minutes without multitasking. Have fun