I’ve heard that multitasking can make you less productive, which is a bummer. I try to be as productive as possible, especially when it comes to phone calls.
If I’m on a walk, I’ll call my mom back.
If I’m walking to a meeting, I’ll return someone’s call.
If I’m doing dishes, I’ll chat with someone washing plates and cutlery as quietly as I can.
And sometimes when I’m eating, I’ll give a friend a holler. Of course, I’ll mute myself when I chew. I’m not an animal.
During self-care month (aka Gelf-care), I did my best to not do anything else when I was eating. Not look at my phone, not do work, not read a book… nothing. I found that I didn’t enjoy my meal any more than I normally would, but I did find myself getting anxious. Needless to say, I haven’t incorporate that habit very well into my life.
However, yesterday I was out and I had half an hour to eat before heading to an appointment. I have been completely engrossed in Roxane Gay’s memoir, “Hunger,” and I wanted to eat my meal and keep reading her book. It’s so damn good.
A friend who’s traveling and I haven’t had a chance to talk to in a while, texted me asking if I was free to talk. I wanted to because of the 6-hour time difference between us, but I really wanted to eat my dinner and catch up on this book. Yes, it’s that good, so I said no and asked when we could catch up later.
The funny thing is that I could have told this friend the truth because I know that she wouldn’t want me to talk and eat either because:
She wouldn’t want to hear me chew despite the fact that I would mute myself.
She’s good about eating in peace and without distraction.
It felt good to say no and take those few minutes to have my dinner and pore through that book. Did I still inhale my dinner? Yes. Did I still have trouble putting that book down? Yes. Did I end up getting to talk to my friend later? Yes! In fact, she surprised me an hour later, so it was win-win all around.
Are you good about creating boundaries? Eating without distraction or just generally saying no? Tell me below and if you like what you’ve read, please share it and subscribe below. Also, if you’ve read Roxane Gay’s memoir, let me know what you thought of it, too. Thanks!