Do one thing at a time and you’ll (a) be more productive and (b) actually enjoy the moment. You might also re-learn how to absorb more than 140 characters in one sitting. You might actually clear up some brain space and make time for new thinking.

Increase your productivity, as author and presenter Jeff Davidson advises in his May PM article, by s-l-o-w-i-n-g  down! On the surface, makes no sense, does it! Try it, and you’ll be hooked.

The most egregious example of well-intentioned but ultimately inefficient multi-tasking in my work life is jumping from e-mail to project, back to e-mail, and then to phone call while reading e-mail, back to project, back to e-mail, and so the treadmill conspires.

I was motivated by Jeff’s short article to chip away at my bad habit. I (re)learned just how much I can accomplish in any given 30 minutes or hour by focusing on a single task instead of maybe five at once. I could actually see my progress, which in turn gives me a sense of accomplishment and releases some of the tension that builds up when you do so much at one time that nothing gets done.

I’ve also rediscovered that focused single-mindedness is fertile ground for creative and strategic thinking.

True, you don’t always have the chance to be so singularly focused, but you soon recognize when those opportunities exist. Based on my own experiment, I’m betting you too will experience the positive reinforcement of immediate results and the luxurious sensation that time has slowed down.

It’s not a novel lesson, but under the pressure of do more, more, more, getting back to basics can actually do the trick. Start by giving yourself permission to read a short PM article entitled “One Thing at a Time.” If you follow Jeff Davidson’s advice, let us know how it plays out.