Multitasking is my specialty. I can hold full conversations while making checklists of assignments and dates and things I’d like to do in my head. I’ve always loved this about myself. I can typically do three or more things at once without flinching. I get so much done by doing so much at once. I recently realized that this is actually hurting me more than I ever imagined.

Even when I’m present, I’m usually far away, mentally. I noticed this in a class last semester. I was fully engaged and engulfed by my professor. She was amazing, and she had a unique outlook on the topics we covered. I started seeing that I became the only one that wasn’t texting, typing, making notes in a planner, or otherwise daydreaming. This drove me nuts.

I was so emotionally involved, and no one else seemed to even care. While most of us had decent grades at the end, I knew I was the only one that really got anything of value out of this class. This led me to question everything else I did. I knew I was one of “them” in every other class. I would be working on other assignments during lectures, or making “to-do” lists during discussions. I wasn’t gaining anything other than off-the-wall facts and credit hours. If I was paying so much money to be in this class, why was I so content with never really being involved?

I started analyzing my relationships with others in this same light. While I’ll never doubt that my relationship with my family is extremely close, I noticed that I could do a better job at listening and focusing. I noticed that someone could tell me a story or ask me to do something, and I would completely forget it an hour later. Even if I was fully engaged at the moment, my brain was hopping around to quickly to retain any of it.

Finally, I had to have a self-examination in this light. When was the last time I got a haircut or painted my nails? Have I gained weight or lost weight this year? When did my favorite shirt get a bleach stain on it? When was the last time I cleaned out my closet? Exactly how old is my toothbrush? In short, I had completely lost track of a lot of things to do with my self-care and organization of the things around me. A simple look in the mirror revealed that I looked extraordinarily tired, my hair was 16 different colors, and everything I owned needed to be sifted through and cleaned out.

This was shocking to me. I was the multitasking god. I got everything done, and I was never slacking. I may have gotten a lot done, but I wasn’t doing it wholeheartedly anymore. I knew something needed to change.

While my change has already begun, I aim to make my New Year’s Resolution this: be available, be alert, and be alive.

BE AVAILABLE

Stop mixing up your priorities. Always be ahead in everything you do, but never forget why you’re ahead. You stay ahead to allow downtime. You do this so you can, without causing a breakdown, help someone in need, make an unexpected trip, have an open ear to someone who has had a bad day, have small talk in a store, or simply just relax with a drink and movie. Remember to stop aggressively chasing the finish line and start enjoying those people handing out a much-needed bottle of water in the middle of the race.

BE ALERT

Stop multitasking. Sure, it will be necessary at times. But when you are doing one important thing, stick to it and it only. Don’t have a conversation and check your social accounts at the same time. Don’t write an essay and clean your house simultaneously. Being so spread out all of the time will cause you to lose your focus. If you lose your focus, you’re putting yourself in harm's way.

Eventually, you’ll start slacking on everything you do because your brain will be exhausted. You’ll bomb a test that you “studied” for so hard. You’ll put the milk up in the pantry and the cereal in the fridge. You’ll forget that the next thing on the list was to get gas, and you’ll be stuck in the middle of nowhere on E. Multitasking and spreading yourself too thin can lead to disastrous situations, be alert and stay on your toes. It will pay off.

BE ALIVE

If you spend your entire day flip-flopping between one task and another, where is the fun in that? On another hand, if you’re on vacation and you’re consumed with Instagram and Snapchat, you’re not really enjoying yourself. You have to learn to be let every moment consume you.

Breathe in the cool air and focus on nothing but that moment. Drink a warm cup of coffee and fully enjoy it. Allow yourself some time to watch your favorite show with absolutely no distractions. In order to truly live, you must fully embrace each moment, and you have to take the moments one by one. Don’t get so caught up in your goals that you get lost in the chase to the top of the mountain. The climb to the top is the most memorable (and important) part.