Time efficient working

I have previously discussed the idea of using interrupt timers - where I set a timer to bring me back to a task. I once had a housemate who would chide me for using a timer when cooking pasta: “Can’t you tell when it is cooked?”. What they didn’t understand was that I do not use the timer to help me know when the pasta is ready, I use the timer so that I can leave the pasta cooking while I devote my full attention to other cooking tasks.

The use of a timer or some other reminder system allows for some degree of parallel working. Multi-tasking, once the buzz word of a productive employee, is now a taboo amongst the productivity elites. I agree that spinning many plates is a great way to fraction one’s attention, and I am not suggesting splitting attention between two distinct deep work tasks. However, the idea of solely mono-tasking, working on only one activity until that work is complete, is a paradise unattainable to the average knowledge worker or scientist.¹ Time is a finite, unchangeable, uncontrollable resource. To poorly paraphrase GTD: There is no such thing as time management, only your actions can be managed. With this reality in mind, efficient use of time can, and should, include having parallel tasks running.

For experiments, there are inevitably setup delays. A flask might need to be oven dried before it can be used, the anti-chamber of a glovebox cycled, an instrument warmed up, and countless other tasks. No one would call it productive to sit staring at the flask while it dries. Instead, some other part of the experiment can be performed - a reagent weighed or the lab book filled in. Another option, particularly good when there is a large amount of time before the next step, is to set an alarm and go do some knowledge work.

Some may think I am promoting multi-tasking, but I disagree. Rather, it is recognising a small period of available time, externalising the tracking of time, and focussing fully on a small and achievable task. By way of analogy, think about cooking: the novice cook should spend time prepping all of the ingredients so that when they start cooking, everything is at hand. With experience, they learn how long certain tasks take, such as chopping a vegetable or mixing a dressing. They can then start one task, such as sautéing some onions, and start mixing and grinding spices in parallel. I don’t think that anyone would describe an iron chef as a stressed out multi-tasker.

I think the same thing applies to science: one can use time efficiently, performing (some) tasks in parallel, but devoted to only one at a time. Using the timer externalises the burden of keeping track and allows the mind to focus.²