Multi-tasking

I want to call myself a pro at it...multi-tasking that is... but then I remember a few real pros that have an edge on me. So I'll just say I work hard at doing many things at once. That's what this post is about. How I want to blog more, but in doing many things at once I have to prioritize what happens in what order, and what percentage of time I devote to each task...and this one is the key...each task must meet some criteria of success. (Of course) that criteria is by my own gauge since the term success is self-defined.

For Instance, capturing one busy 'successful' day in hula-hoop fashion.

I've set the bar at writing at least 5000 words on one piece a day. The clothes must be washed. Respond to email. Make dinner. (We had homemade tacos this night). Trip to the post office. Surf for at least five other articles of interest to read, plus purchase at least three books by authors I've never read along with posting on at least three of my blogs, five preferably. And oops, I knew I was leaving something off... don't forget to eat!

The results.

The clothes could wait. The responding to email, trip to the post office, surfing for interesting articles and book purchases could wait too. I almost held off on making dinner as well, but then I really wanted those tacos. And since I managed to pull off 10,000 words instead of 5000, I actually needed to eat. And the blogs...well that's what I'm doing now. I only was able to do one of the five, though trust me when I say, "It's all really adding up!" 

Seriously, for anyone interested, multi-tasking (on the pro level) is something like baking a homemade cake. The first few times there might be hiccups, and maybe not come out just the way you want. But make enough of them over a period of time and you probably could turn out these homemade cakes with your eyes closed, hands tied behind your back while talking on the telephone. The real key is in the goal setting. What is it you really want to achieve? Make a list. (the ingredients). And practice.