--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It seems as if when you try to do just…" description: "\"It seems as if when you try to do just one thing and nothing but, you can't do it at all. You do everything better if there's more than one thing.\" — N..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2fd/nancy-hale-29768_ifs_it-seems-as-if-when-you-try-to-do-just-o_88886.jpg" --- # It seems as if when you try to do just one thing and… ![“It seems as if when you try to do just one thing and nothing but, you can't do it at all. You do everything better if there's more than one thing.” quote by Nancy Hale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2fd/nancy-hale-29768_ifs_it-seems-as-if-when-you-try-to-do-just-o_88886.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2fd/nancy-hale-29768_ifs_it-seems-as-if-when-you-try-to-do-just-o_88886.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2fd/nancy-hale-29768_ifs_it-seems-as-if-when-you-try-to-do-just-o_88886.jpg) > “It seems as if when you try to do just one thing and nothing but, you can't do it at all. You do everything better if there's more than one thing.” [Nancy Hale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-hale/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Attempting to focus exclusively on a single task often hinders performance; juggling multiple activities can enhance overall effectiveness. **In simple terms:** Multitasking can boost productivity. Key Takeaway Diverse engagement improves outcomes. Themes focus productivity multitasking balance efficiency Mood insightful pragmatic encouraging Type observational insight productivity advice When to use this quote - project coordination - creative brainstorming - learning new skills Key Concepts cognitive flexibility task management Practical Applications - time‑management training - team collaboration Questions to Reflect On - When does multitasking become counterproductive? - How can variety be structured for optimal results? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet ## Related quotes > [Once the world sees you as that one thing, and the better you are at that thing, the more you can only be that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maverick-carter/once-the-world-sees-you-as-that-one-thing-and-the-better-you-are-at/) [Maverick Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maverick-carter/) > [We all have different sides; nobody is just one thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lotte-verbeek/we-all-have-different-sides-nobody-is-just-one-thing/) [Lotte Verbeek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lotte-verbeek/) > [All Korean food is not just one thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roy-choi/all-korean-food-is-not-just-one-thing/) [Roy Choi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roy-choi/) > [I wanna be involved in everything, not just one thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mustard/i-wanna-be-involved-in-everything-not-just-one-thing/) Mustard > [When you are exhausted from trying, try just one more time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chrisse-feros/when-you-are-exhausted-from-trying-try-just-one-more-time/) Chrisse Feros > [There is one thing we can do better than anyone else: we can be ourselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-arthur-ward/there-is-one-thing-we-can-do-better-than-anyone-else-we-can-be/) [William Arthur Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-arthur-ward/) > [When is that whole 'old enough to know better' thing supposed to kick in?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-is-that-whole-old-enough-to-know-better-thing-supposed-to-kick-in/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [A better thing to grow up with is to be funny I think, and if I had, if I had my choice I would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joy-behar/a-better-thing-to-grow-up-with-is-to-be-funny-i-think-and-if-i-had-if/) [Joy Behar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joy-behar/) > ['It could be better' is the only thing that anyone should write in the margins of their own script.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ol-parker/it-could-be-better-is-the-only-thing-that-anyone-should-write-in-the/) [Ol Parker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ol-parker/) > [It’s better to do one thing well than ten things poorly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heather-hart/it-s-better-to-do-one-thing-well-than-ten-things-poorly/) [Heather Hart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heather-hart/) > [You get better at the thing you do by having to explain it to someone else. That, I think, totally makes my work stronger.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/branden-jacobs-jenkins/you-get-better-at-the-thing-you-do-by-having-to-explain-it-to-someone/) [Branden Jacobs-Jenkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/branden-jacobs-jenkins/) > [“The more time you invest, the better you become at that thing”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sunday-adelaja/the-more-time-you-invest-the-better-you-become-at-that-thing/) [Sunday Adelaja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sunday-adelaja/) > [“There is no better thing on this Earth than pie. ” I smile”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/there-is-no-better-thing-on-this-earth-than-pie-i-smile/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It's better to do one thing at a time and give your full concentration.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erica-fernandes/it-s-better-to-do-one-thing-at-a-time-and-give-your-full-concentration/) [Erica Fernandes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erica-fernandes/) > [The only better thing than a unicorn, is a gay unicorn.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lady-gaga/the-only-better-thing-than-a-unicorn-is-a-gay-unicorn/) [Lady Gaga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lady-gaga/) ## More by Nancy Hale > [Creation lives alone in a small temple. Only one may worship at a time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-hale/creation-lives-alone-in-a-small-temple-only-one-may-worship-at-a-time/) [Nancy Hale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-hale/) > [To do anything, it is first necessary to be doing nothing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-hale/to-do-anything-it-is-first-necessary-to-be-doing-nothing/) [Nancy Hale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-hale/) > [After my mother's death, I began to see her as she had really been… It was less like losing someone than discovering someone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-hale/after-my-mother-s-death-i-began-to-see-her-as-she-had-really-been-it/) [Nancy Hale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-hale/) > [Malicious gossip takes the place of creation in non-creative lives.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-hale/malicious-gossip-takes-the-place-of-creation-in-non-creative-lives/) [Nancy Hale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-hale/) > [In order to go anywhere it is necessary to be where one is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-hale/in-order-to-go-anywhere-it-is-necessary-to-be-where-one-is/) [Nancy Hale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-hale/) > [Mine! There isn't any such thing as mine. The world slips slithering through my fingers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-hale/mine-there-isn-t-any-such-thing-as-mine-the-world-slips-slithering/) [Nancy Hale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-hale/) > [one must find one's natural home, not try to construct it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-hale/one-must-find-one-s-natural-home-not-try-to-construct-it/) [Nancy Hale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-hale/) > [The dead hand of research lies heavy on too many novels.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-hale/the-dead-hand-of-research-lies-heavy-on-too-many-novels/) [Nancy Hale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-hale/) > [The dark has to be contained in the light or the light will be contained in the dark.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-hale/the-dark-has-to-be-contained-in-the-light-or-the-light-will-be/) [Nancy Hale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-hale/) > [Never give away your work. People don’t value what they don’t have to pay for.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-hale/never-give-away-your-work-people-don-t-value-what-they-don-t-have-to/) [Nancy Hale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-hale/) > [The best work of artists in any age is the work of innocence liberated by technical knowledge. The laboratory experiments that led to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-hale/the-best-work-of-artists-in-any-age-is-the-work-of-innocence/) [Nancy Hale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-hale/) > [If civilization ever achieves a higher standard of what constitutes normality, it will have been the neurotic who led the way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-hale/if-civilization-ever-achieves-a-higher-standard-of-what-constitutes/) [Nancy Hale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-hale/) > [Many an author will speak of writing, in his best work, more than he actually knows.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-hale/many-an-author-will-speak-of-writing-in-his-best-work-more-than-he/) [Nancy Hale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-hale/) > [We might likewise say that humans are the neurotics of the animal world, in that they are the only animals who must choose to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-hale/we-might-likewise-say-that-humans-are-the-neurotics-of-the-animal/) [Nancy Hale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-hale/) > [imagination is new reality in the process of being created. It represents the part of the existing order that can still grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-hale/imagination-is-new-reality-in-the-process-of-being-created-it/) [Nancy Hale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-hale/) [Explore all 18 Nancy Hale quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-hale/) ## More Ifs quotes > [Women still, when they have breast cancer, go to work; they still lead their lives. They have to. I just did what I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/monica-potter/women-still-when-they-have-breast-cancer-go-to-work-they-still-lead/) [Monica Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/monica-potter/) > [Most of us are convinced that we are our egos, which is who we think we are. The ego is part of our incarnation.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ram-dass/most-of-us-are-convinced-that-we-are-our-egos-which-is-who-we-think/) [Ram Dass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ram-dass/) > [Histories never conclude; they just pause their prose. Their stories are, if they are truthful, untidy affairs, resistant to windings-up and sortings-out. They beat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/histories-never-conclude-they-just-pause-their-prose-their-stories/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) > [If you ask an introvert a question, wait until she thinks about it. Introverts think before speaking, not through speaking. If you want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-helgoe/if-you-ask-an-introvert-a-question-wait-until-she-thinks-about-it/) [Laurie Helgoe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-helgoe/) > [Many individuals spend a considerable portion of their lifetimes in terror of one imagined catastrophe or another. The classic is that your immortal soul…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-neil-smith/many-individuals-spend-a-considerable-portion-of-their-lifetimes-in/) [L. Neil Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-neil-smith/) > [Obviously, if you don't love life, you can't enjoy an oyster.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eleanor-clark/obviously-if-you-don-t-love-life-you-can-t-enjoy-an-oyster/) [Eleanor Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eleanor-clark/) > [If I don't have pressure, I don't function.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ferran-adria/if-i-don-t-have-pressure-i-don-t-function/) [Ferran Adria](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ferran-adria/) > [If you restore a car, and you're making money, then you're doing it wrong.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-leno/if-you-restore-a-car-and-you-re-making-money-then-you-re-doing-it/) [Jay Leno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-leno/) > [I understand that it's the music that keeps me alive... That's my lifeblood. And to give that up for, like, the TV, the cars,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-springsteen/i-understand-that-it-s-the-music-that-keeps-me-alive-that-s-my/) [Bruce Springsteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-springsteen/) > [If we gave up our freedom as the price of security, we would no longer be the great nation that we are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruth-bader-ginsburg/if-we-gave-up-our-freedom-as-the-price-of-security-we-would-no-longer/) [Ruth Bader Ginsburg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruth-bader-ginsburg/) > [If my campaign is not in the debate, we will not be talking about how we really fix this problem of endless and expanding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-stein/if-my-campaign-is-not-in-the-debate-we-will-not-be-talking-about-how/) [Jill Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-stein/) > [Nothing is so powerful as an insight into human nature... what compulsions drive a man, what instincts dominate his action. If you know these…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-bernbach/nothing-is-so-powerful-as-an-insight-into-human-nature-what/) [William Bernbach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-bernbach/) > [But we are convinced that if we are to play a meaningful role nationally, and in the community of nations, we must be second…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikram-sarabhai/but-we-are-convinced-that-if-we-are-to-play-a-meaningful-role/) [Vikram Sarabhai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikram-sarabhai/) > [The thing about hitting kids is, think about if you were doing the same thing to another adult. Hitting your kid is really the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-braff/the-thing-about-hitting-kids-is-think-about-if-you-were-doing-the/) [Zach Braff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zach-braff/) > [Reader, if you are gifted with nerves like mine, aspire to any character but that of a wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/reader-if-you-are-gifted-with-nerves-like-mine-aspire-to-any/) [Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/) Browse all 94,303 Ifs quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It seems as if when you try to do just one thing and nothing but, you can't do it at all. 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