St. Ignatius of Loyola and the multitasking

Today, multitasking, the fact of performing several tasks at the same time, is presented as a positive ability that improves our work performance. Something that, supposedly, young people, because of their close relationship with technology, would find easier than previous generations.

So we can see people who are in a meeting, but at the same time they are answering messages of whatsapp on their cell phones or answering emails. They're attending class, but they're also checking some of their social networks. They are chatting with you and taking pictures to feed their profiles.

The obvious question is whether people can really multitask well. Scientists say we can't. René Marois, an expert in neuroscience, points out that "our brain does not handle multitasking situations well. As soon as two tasks need our attention, productivity suffers".

That's right. In reality, with multitasking what we do is either perform one of these tasks automatically, or switch from one task to another, constantly connecting and disconnecting. This, far from improving our work, has a series of negative consequences: lower efficiency, worsening memory, increased risk of errors, increased stress...

It is a way of working, and of relating to others, that gives us the feeling of efficiency, of making the most of our time, but in reality what it does is to decentralize and fragment us. Just the opposite of what our psychology and our spirit need.

St. Ignatius of Loyola coined the phrase 'do what you do' and that could be repeated to us men and women of the 21st century with greater relevance. Doing just one task and giving oneself to it with all one's soul is the best way to do it well. An idea that, in one way or another, is present in different cultural and religious traditions. Concentration, living in the present moment, doing what you do... are different versions of this unity of mind and action.

In our frenetic, performance-driven world, multitasking gives us a false sense of efficiency and even importance. But, in reality, we are becoming people with less capacity for concentration and interiority. This is precisely why we become less reflective and less critical. We function largely on external stimuli.

All this has a consequence also in the spiritual dimension and in our relationship with God. It is difficult for us to concentrate, and for this reason, prayer becomes an arduous exercise. We need external stimuli to move our sensitivity, but it is difficult for us to enter into an interior dialogue with the One who dwells within us, who is, as St. Augustine said in the Confessions God dwells in our innermost being, which is where we can find him. God dwells within us, which is where we can find him.

It is not a bad New Year's resolution to take the advice of the Guipuzcoan soldier and simply do what we should do. And do it well. One task after another. Waiting for their turn.

And without pushing.