PREFACE

MYTH

My life demands that I do
several things at once.

REALITY

I must be fully present
as I travel through my days.

The successful man is the average man, focused.

ANONYMOUS

Why Me?

I am despondent over my ample qualifications to write this book.

That I wrote it verifies my good will and poor judgment. Why would I voluntarily take on the task of authoring a book when more pressing matters demand my immediate attention?

Let’s breeze through one of my basic weekday mornings. By 8:30 I’ve exercised, done a little writing at my neighborhood café, scanned the headlines, reorganized my to-do list, whizzed to the local grocery, woken and fed my three glorious (aka “grumpy-it’s-a-school-day-again”) sons, prepped lunches, run the dishwasher, imperceptibly tidied up, tossed in a laundry load, completed three round-trip school runs, returned several client messages, and am en route to my first meeting of the day—chagrined that the clock is closing in on 9:00.

Don’t be impressed. I’m typically burned out by 11:30.

Upon arrival at my office, I’m not congratulating myself on my efficiency. No. Awaiting me is a lovely array of supremely urgent messages, meetings, interviews, conference calls, a lunchtime presentation, and a manuscript deadline. How will I ever catch up?

I won’t! I am a failure. I may as well collapse facedown on my keyboard right now.

Nothing can save me, with the exception of … singletasking!

Me and You

Forget about my career as an author, speaker, and consultant. What matters more is that I understand on a visceral level the titanic demands facing my readers daily—and I have a solution that truly works.

Nothing is more annoying than getting advice from so-called experts completely out of touch with the reality of normal lives:

“Delegate 90 percent of your tasks; free yourself for creative strategic planning.”

“Reduce your workload to fifteen minutes a day; only do the real essentials!”

“Don’t take on any more responsibilities until your schedule opens up.”

“Take several vacations a year to rejuvenate.”

Has your head blown up?

Do not despair. I am not one of those types of experts. Their misguided advice is decidedly not the solution to your travails. I’ve got the cure, and I’m calling it singletasking.

Successful singletasking means managing your own sweet self (starting with your thoughts) and your encompassing environment (including your relationships).

Bliss is a slim volume away. The remedy has arrived, in the helpful form of a fast, fun read. Did I mention practical?

I am confident the two of us can muddle through the murk and emerge brighter, happier, and more efficacious by the far end of this book’s cover.