Month: October 2014

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The Dangers of Multitasking

A survey conducted by AllJobs in 2013 yielded that multitasking, along with credibility and teamwork, is one of the top three traits employers want in an employee. Multitasking. Have you ever actually stopped and wondered what it would be like to truly multitask? What we mean here is focusing your brain equally on more than one task at a time. It’s impossible to have your brain focus completely on more than one task. Since multitasking is one of the most sought-after traits employers look for, more and more job seekers are listing it as a skill on their resumes. But should employers really be looking for multitasker as their ideal employee?

Multitasking is the ability to perform a number of tasks simultaneously without it compromising the quality and efficiency of the performance.  A simple experiment held in a number of universities across the country sampled a large number of students who were asked to write a row of 10 numbers (1-10) on a board, and below it a row of letters (A-J).  The second time around, they were asked to perform that same task but this time, write a number-letter, number-letter alternately. The observation showed a clear decrease in the efficiency when the participants performed the second task.

According to David Meyer, a cognitive scientist from the University of Michigan, multitasking causes our brains to slow down and increases the chances of making a mistake. Distractions and interruptions interfere with our ability to process data.

It’s true that every job seeker may declare in a job interview that one of his main strengths is multitasking, and many employers are convinced it’s an attractive trait that one cannot succeed without. However, in recent years, cognitive scientists, psychologists, and management professors have challenged the necessity and prestige of such trait.  In a recent study, it took a group of  Microsoft employees an average of 15 minutes to return to serious work after answering e-mails or text messages.  This distraction caused them to continue to engage in things that were irrelevant to their work.

A classic example of how multitasking affects our daily lives would be when you drive and carry on an important phone conversation (with a Bluetooth, of course) at the same time.  Suddenly, you find you’ve taken the wrong turn, even if it’s the same way you’ve driven home for the last 10 years.  Multitasking not only affects efficiency, but it also quality.  With driving, for instance, the fact that we’re busy with two parallel tasks causes us to become distracted and as a result, not only do we slow down our pace but we also tend to get lost, get off track and head straight into the car in front of us… If we multitask at work, while the danger is nowhere near as large, the outcome is similar: lack of focus and poor quality work.

Jonathan Saphira, a senior analyst in a leading research company in the U.S., estimates the cost of distractions to the U.S. economy to be approximately $650 million a year.  However, it’s important to remember that distractions at the workplace will never disappear, as that’s the nature of how work is done and how ideas pass on.  After all, what may be a distraction to one person could be collaboration to another.

Here are some recommendations for how to keep from multitasking, but still be an effective worker:

  • Prioritize tasks on a monthly/weekly/daily basis.
  • Allocate a realistic time frame for every task and don’t slip into other tasks until you have completed the first one.
  • While working on a professional task that demands great focus, it’s best to filter out any background noises and create an effective work environment (sit in a room with few stimulations, sign out of your inbox, put your phone on silent, etc.)
  • Make a list of your usual distractions (e-mails, phones, hallway conversations, etc.)
  • Set aside 3 timed, limited instances during the day where you engage in your usual distractions.
  • Play some peaceful music with no lyrics. Some say it really helps with concentration.

In the future, maybe employees will be able to program sensors and smart apps with their priorities so that they can serve as a sort of “Time Babysitter” that will efficiently oversee their time allocation.  But until then, it’s all in our hands!  So, try your best to keep your distractions and multitasking to a minimum, and you can become a more efficient worker and overall, a more focused person.

Still don’t believe that multitasking is that difficult? Try playing this game and see your results.

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4 Steps to Creating a Memorable 60-Second Pitch

This week, VAYOMAR’s trainers are taking part in the Mass Challenge Awards Ceremony, happening on October 29th. Over 1700 startups sent in applications in order to win $1.75 million dollars to further their startup. VAYOMAR helped each of the Top 26 Startups prepare a 60-second pitch to present at the awards show in front of 1500 potential investors. Imagine you’re the founder of one of these new startups, eager to expand and gain support from investors.  Would you be prepared if someone asked you to pitch your startup in just 60 seconds?  It sounds impossible.  How can you be expected to give all the necessary details in only one minute?  Believe it or not, 60 seconds is plenty of time to introduce yourself, your startup, and your goals.  All you have to do is follow these easy steps in order to create not just a 60-second pitch, but a GREAT 60-second pitch.

Step 1: The Opening

Every famous speech needs a powerful opening to capture the audience’s attention, and that’s exactly what your pitch needs.  Whatever it is you do, make it relatable to what you’re speaking about.  It could be a quote or a statistic, something dramatic to really pull them in.  It could be a question or an ask for a raise of hands, something to get the audience involved.  It could even be something as simple as wearing a funny accessory or holding a funny prop, something to make people look at you. You need to clearly communicate what it is you’re pitching within the first 10-15 seconds.

Step 2: The Essence

Now that you’ve introduced yourself in an interesting way, it’s time to move on to the bulk of your speech: what exactly your company is.  The trick here is to do it in the least amount of words as you possibly can.  There is no real correlation between the innovation of your company and the time it takes to talk about its core essence.  Your audience just needs to understand the importance of what you’re trying to say.  After another 15-20 seconds, you should have communicated the space your venture is in (i.e. transportation, technology, etc.), the value this idea brings, and the innovation.

Step 3: The Traction

30 seconds have gone by and you’ve already captured your audience’s attention and fully explained the core of your company.  Now is the time to tell your audience about the progress you’ve made.  They will need facts, not just ideas, to prove that you can actually further your company.  Talk about the money you’ve made so far, the advisors you’ve recruited, partnerships you’ve formed, anything to show that you’re serious about the future.  Talk about the team you’ve put together, where you want to improve upon or advance in the short- and long-term.  In these 15-20 seconds, you should prove to potential investors that you have a solid foundation and know how to take your company to the next level.

Step 4: The Conclusion

At the end of your pitch, you must clearly communicate what it is you want from your audience.  If it’s money for the company, potential partnerships, or something else, your audience must be made fully aware.  Thank the audience for their time, and your 5-10 seconds will have been worthwhile.

The goal here is to get face time with potential investors, so you need to be able to stand out. To learn more about how to give a great pitch and make it count, listen to this podcast created by one of our founders, Ariel Halevi!

“How to Build a Winning 60-Second Pitch”

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Verbal vs. Non-Verbal Communication

What part of your message impacts your audience the most? What you say or the way you say it? To find out, take a look at our info graphic on Verbal vs. Non-Verbal Communication! CLICK HERE to view it now!

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Are employees snoozing through your meetings? Here's the solution

In most organizations, team meetings are perceived as useless and boring.  No matter how hard you may try to make it interesting, your employees still seem restless.  How can we make these meetings effective AND engaging?  Before we try to understand how to do that, let’s ask ourselves the following question: what are the classic problems managers run into during staff meetings?

  • Employees show lack of interest and are busy chatting.
  • Employees arrive late.
  • Employees walk out to take phone calls.
  • There is no internalization and implementation of the points raised in the meeting.

However, this is not a one-way street.  If we were to ask your employees the exact same question, they would probably say that:

  • Meetings start late.
  • Meetings don’t end on time.
  • They are boring.
  • They are ineffective.
  • The message isn’t clear.
  • There’s information overload.
  • The topic doesn’t pertain to everyone present but only to some departments.

The following model attempts to tackle some of these problems:

A Model for Constructing Staff Meetings to Motivate Employees

  1. Present the meeting objectives in a precise and concise manner.  A clear objective and vision instill commitment among employees.
  2. Present the rationale behind the objectives (for example: other ruled-out alternatives, examples of past experiences, your position in relation to competitors, case studies that led to developing such a procedure, simulations, roll switching, etc.) – the “what” isn’t enough; it’s also important to understand the “why.”  The more an employee takes part in making decisions, the more committed he is to perform his tasks in the best way possible.
  3. The implications (value, benefit) of meeting objectives on any level (individual/group/school) – what do we gain by achieving our goals? It is important for employees to see the end result of their hard work and effort.
  4. Predicting and presenting possible resistance – when a manager knows how to detect and bring to the surface possible backlash before his employees do, he’s able to minimize the degree of resistance and show that he knows the situation up close.
  5. Holding a discussion about the working methods to achieve the goals – a good manager should encourage creative thinking and teamwork.

When a manager builds his staff meetings based on this model, the message he is sending is a positive one.  It shows he’s truly invested in his employees, that meeting them is important to him, that he doesn’t want to waste their time, that he understands their motives, and that he knows how to appreciate their hard work.  Above all, a manager should serve as a role model and set a personal example for his employees (a factor that has been found to be key in motivating employees in the long run).