Two Monitor Productivity Myth

Oto_godfrey-multi_screen_studio

It seems I’m always looking for a way to increase my productivity. I’ve tried going to libraries, getting a new keyboard, and using to television trays for my computer.  These ideas have worked out great, but I still didn’t get the productivity I wanted. There is a saying that states having two monitors improves productivity for a writer. However, I’m unsure if this is a myth.

When I came home from the halfway house, I figured I didn’t need a television because I could just use two monitors. I could work on my laptop and use the external monitor as a substitute for television. Three years later, I realized that having these two monitors going at the same time actually kills my focus and attention span.

Two days ago, I decided to shut off my laptop’s monitor and read articles on my external monitor. I realized I was more focused on the task at hand, this case it was job hunting.  At first, I didn’t really care as to why I was more focused, I was just going to roll with it. However, I remembered that a few years ago I was never productive with two monitors unless I was teaching myself animation or stock trading. When I’m writing using two monitors, I’m lucky to get a few lines down at best.

My theory is that because I have two monitors, I’m trying to focus on both monitors resulting in an information overload. My second theory is that I’m really trying to look at both but end up focusing on the monitor that requires the less amount of attention, which is usually my YouTube shows or Facebook games.

As a writer, I only need to focus on one thing at a time, which is the article I’m writing. I can deal with a quick song change or a reread of that article. However, I can do those things with one monitor. Plus, I wouldn’t be distracted by the ads and recommendations on the other monitor.

So I’ll try this for a few more days and see if I could get to my goal of having five blog posts a day.