I love Big Think. (bigthink.com) And right now, they are singing my song!

During several years of teaching literature and writing classes at universities in Chicago I always start class by asking students to try an experiment for the length of the class, so we’re talking 8 to 16 weeks of time. The experiment is simple: stop multitasking! Instead do just one thing at a time.

They gasp in collective horror when I say yes, that means no Facebook and Twitter while doing homework. No music or TV. No talking on the phone while drinking coffee and smoking and driving and…

Just do one thing at a time.

One of my students recently wrote a research paper on the dangers of a distracted mind. (Hi Edward!)

Here is one very nice study from Harvard that tried the experiment in their own unique way. Doing one thing at a time really does matter!

So, give it a look and see what you think. Meantime, please everyone, just try it. (You can always go back.)

Not only will you be safer but you’ll be calmer too and so will everyone around you!

And those students? The ones who really give up the multitasking. They do better in school.