Originally published August 11, 2024

First, I'm so excited you're here! Second, I'm even more excited to share the shifts in this newsletter with you 🎉

I wanted to make this a space with more than just insights where you can:

Take a moment to pause.
Learn something new.
Get an actionable tip.
And yes, still some personal insights.
​
​Just wait until you get to today's personal share... lol.
Here's your hint: 💩

But above all, I wanted to help more; share more.

There is an overwhelming amount of free information available in this world.

And while there is always exceptions, hello rampant misinformation, most of it is true and helpful for someone. You just have to find the thing that works for you specifically and figure out how to implement it on your own.

Which is where it can get hard.
The putting it into practice part.

It's why we hire coaches, find mentors, go to therapy, and crave community.

To help us along the way.

It's why I'm calling this iteration of the newsletter, The Purposeful Pause.

I hope it can be that for you - a pause with purpose.

The Cost of Switching

A client shared a post with me this week from r/overemployed, a subreddit for people who work multiple remote jobs, where one user said “All these jobs are easy and manageable.” and in the same thought “I feel like I'm going to drop d3ad anytime soon.”

I immediately wanted to start a dissertation on why the sentence “All these jobs are easy and manageable” is not even remotely the full story (a blog post I'm working on now), but I wanted to speak to part of the topic here that you can do something with today.

Because a huge reason that knowledge-based careers can lead to burnout - whether it's one or more jobs at the same time - is because of context and task switching.

Before we dive into all things switching, let's talk about today's work world.

In 1959, Peter Drucker, the inventor of modern management, coined the term knowledge work a term that to this day doesn't have a clear definition.

For today, we'll use the description: work that involves complex problem solving and is done by a person who is not only a expert in their field but is also able to apply it by navigating the social maze of their workplace, understand the quirks of their organization, and building relationships along the way.

Then in 1966, Drucker also coined the term knowledge workers.

As of February 2024, a survey by Gartner found the United States had around 100 million knowledge workers. That's 60% of the population. Globally, it's over 1 billion knowledge workers.

That's a lot of people doing work that has barely been around 70 years.

Some of us millennials have parents older than that. Hell, when Betty White was 70, she was at peak Golden Girls era!

Point being that knowledge work surely existed before the term was coined, but at ~70 years old we are still learning how to do it well and the overall impacts on the human body.

When all our work is in the brain, it requires intentional effort to focus, shut off, etc. Whereas with manual labor, there is a definitive process, materials required, and when the process or your day ends - so does the work.

Okay, back to switching!

Task switching is when we switch from one task to another. In essence, the shift of attention or cognitive resources. Here are some examples:

• Editing a podcast ➡️ emailing a prospective client
• Coding a website ➡️ answering a quick Slack message​

Context switching goes a bit deeper into when the rules of work are changed. Here's a few examples:

• Drafting a strategic plan ➡️ an urgent customer issue
• Creative brainstorming ➡️ detailed troubleshooting task
• Writing marketing copy ➡️ analyzing client feedback

​

A 2005 study by researchers at The University of California, Irvine, showed it takes, on average, 25 minutes and 26 seconds to fully return to your work following an interruption.

How many people are including that 26 minutes in how much it "costs" every time you get interrupted during a task?

Hardly any, I'd bet.

We won't even get into how many people aren't taking that time at all and instead relying on caffeine (or adrenaline/coritsol) to jump back in more quickly. 😅

To be clear, context-switching isn't inherently bad.

And is definitely a necessary skill for us knowledge workers.

​The problem becomes when you are switching at an unsustainable rate that puts stress on your brain and nervous system because you've run out of room to hold any more information at once.

That's what ends up leading to mental fatigue, brain fog, more errors, reduced memory retention, opportunity costs, and yes, burnout.

​So what can you do?

Try This:

The Single-Tab Challenge

For the next week, I want to challenge you to spend some time each day working with only one browser tab (or application/window) open at a time.

This is a choose your own adventure time length because we start with what's sustainable around here. Here's some options to get you started:

• 30 minutes, 2x a day
• a 1-hour time blocks
• 90 minute focus-time blocks
• half-day
• full-day

​
Choose a length of time that makes it the easiest to get started. You can always work up to longer periods of time!

THE KEY

The key to the challenge is to have each of the following before you start:

• a defined period of time
• only one browser tab (or application/window) open
• a place to take notes on ideas of tasks that come to mind so you can revisit them after (instead of immediately opening a new tab)

If you finish your first task and have more time left, pick up another single-tab task!

​

WHY THIS WORKS

1. It reduces digital distractions.
2. Forces mono-tasking.
3. Increases awareness of switching habits.
4. Improves focus and concentration.

​

TIPS FOR SUCCESS

• Plan your time-blocks in advance to minimize switches.
• Use browser bookmarks for frequently accessed sites.
• Try browser extensions that limit tabs if you need extra support. I love the OneTab extension for saving things I want to revisit but don't want to add to my actual bookmarks.
• Take short breaks between major task switches. Finish the first task in 25 minutes? Take a 5 minute break before starting up another task.

​

REFLECTING ON THE WEEK

After you've completed your Single-Tab Challenege, reflect on how things went, what you learned, and how it may change your work habits moving forward. Here are a few questions you can use to journal on:

1. How did it feel to work with just one tab?
2. What did you notice about your urge to switch tasks?
3. Did you complete tasks faster or with better quality?
4. What was the biggest challenge you faced?
5. How might you incorporate this practice into your regular workflow?

​

The Single-Tab Challenge won't solve burnout or prevent you from ever context or task switching, but it is a great habit to use regularly to give your brain deep, productive work without interruptions. It is one of many tools to help you in your journey to prevent burnout.

I'd love to hear how this goes! Reply here and let me know how the experience was for you 🫶

I was walking the dogs at lunch and watched as a dung beetle set out to move a turdlet across the yard. (I googled it and turdlet still isn't in Merriam-Websters but it should be. For those who don’t have or regularly watch dung beetles, they stand wheelbarrow style pushing with their back feet to move their loot. I captured it in 4K and made you a gif, lol.)

​
And it got me thinking about personal growth.

​There is this upside-down and backwards feeling that has come with my personal growth journey. This unstable feeling that comes with upending what I thought I knew to be true about myself and the world around me.​

Truthfully, I wouldn't search to find better footing if I thought the previous foundation was stable... right? So I guess there's that.

But in raw parts of me, it all looks like a lot of effort upfront while everything still looks and feels the same for a bit (or months or years).

At least until I’ve finally reached a milestone and the scenery finally looks and feels different.

Sometimes that different scenery is noticing a default thought-process has shifted to be healthier - after the thought happens. A choice when tempted isn't as difficult of a decision. Boundaries are held when others break them.

After years of this, I'm realizing how much growth requires a level of hope. Something I don't think I really grasped when I started, I was just desperate for life to be different. To be better.

To have hope that all your effort will get you where you want to go. That the future version of you will benefit from what current you is doing.​

I'm grateful for how much hope past me had that we'd get here. It has fostered a level of self-trust that gives current me confidence that the work I do today will make future me even stronger.

​And to think... all that, from a dung beetle. 💀

WHAT I'M LOVING:

• I don't listen to much audio content (it asks a lot of energy of neurospicy brain to keep focused and not wander) but this episode of back from the borderline recommended by my friend, Erika, was worth every minute.
• I've reached the pinnacle of safe food routines for the first time in almost a year. It includes the classic deviled egg in egg salad form and it's heaven. Second only to cottage cheese combos. ifykyk.
• I'm trying this band-less style of my favorite built-in bra tanks in my on-going quest to never wear a bra again. I'm not part of the itty-bitty committee so we'll see how well band-less does.

HAVING A GREAT TIME HERE?

Here's a few ways you can let me know:

• Option 1: 💌 Share with a fellow creative or business owner. Community starts with each of us and friends don't let friends chase their dreams at the expense of their mental health! If you know someone seeking more sustainability and harmony in their life and/or business, send this their way.
• Option 2: 👋 Say hi! Hit reply and share a sentence or two about anything you enjoyed or hit home for you. I always hope these words find the right people at the right time, but it's always makes my day to hear from you!

Hey there! You're receiving a copy of The Purposeful Pause in your inbox because you opted in for this weekly newsletter. Every Sunday, I'll share a blend of practical wisdom, actionable advice, and personal insights—all designed to help you create a more sustainable life and business.

To make sure you don't miss out on these purposeful moments, add [email protected] to your address book.
​
Received this from a friend? You can click here to subscribe!

Need to step away? Totally understand! You can unsubscribe below right now, no hard feelings. Remember that this will remove you from all email communications so if you only want a break from certain topics, feel free to reply here and let me know!