Stop Switching, Start Batching — Group Your Shallow Work
Every time you switch between email, chat, and tasks, your brain pays a tax. Batching groups similar shallow work into set windows so you do it faster and protect your focus the rest of the day.
The idea
Batching means doing similar shallow tasks together, in set windows, instead of as they arrive. Email, messages, approvals, small admin — each one feels tiny, but every switch into and out of it costs your brain real time to refocus (the "switching tax"). Batch them into, say, two 30-minute windows a day, and you do the same work faster while leaving long, uninterrupted stretches for the work that actually matters. It is the difference between being available all day and being effective.
Who is this for?
Vikram Joshi
Software Engineer · Pune
Vikram checked Slack and email constantly — he felt responsive but shipped almost nothing before evening.
He switched to batching: email and messages only at 11 AM and 4 PM, notifications muted in between, two protected coding blocks around them.
His reply times barely changed, but his real output roughly doubled. The work was always there — the constant switching was the thief.
"You are not behind because you work slowly. You are behind because you start over every few minutes."
What you'll get
Your shallow work grouped into windows
Email, chat and admin batched instead of scattered across the day.
Less switching tax
Fewer refocus costs — you do the same small work in less time.
Protected stretches for deep work
Long, uninterrupted blocks for the work that actually matters.
A notifications plan
A simple rule for muting pings between batches so they stop pulling you.
Watch
Tim Ferriss · concise explainer · ~6 min
Do the challenge
1List your shallow work
Write the recurring small tasks that interrupt you: email, chat, approvals, status pings, quick admin. These are the things you currently do "whenever they pop up."
💡 Rule of thumb: if it takes under ~10 minutes and someone else triggers it, it is shallow work and a batching candidate.
2Pick 2 batch windows
Choose two fixed times a day to handle the batch — e.g. 11 AM and 4 PM, 30 minutes each. Put them on your calendar. Outside those windows, the shallow stuff waits.
3Mute pings between windows
Turn off notification badges/sounds for email and chat outside your batch windows. If something is truly urgent, people will call. Everything else holds until the next window.
💡 Set a status like "Heads-down, replying at 11 & 4" so people know when to expect you. Most "urgent" things comfortably wait two hours.
4Protect a deep block around them
Between your two shallow windows, defend at least one long block for your most important work. The whole point of batching is to free that stretch.
💡 I want to batch my shallow work (email, chat, admin) into 2 windows a day and protect deep-work time. I work [start]–[end] and these are my fixed meetings: [list]. Suggest two 30-minute batch windows, the deep-work block to protect between them, and a short status message to set expectations.
Your template
MY BATCHING PLAN — Stop the Switching Tax SHALLOW WORK I'LL BATCH (under ~10 min, triggered by others): • Email • Chat/DMs • Approvals • Status pings • Quick admin MY 2 BATCH WINDOWS: • Window 1: ______ (30 min) • Window 2: ______ (30 min) BETWEEN WINDOWS: • Notifications: MUTED • Status message: "Heads-down — replying at [11] & [4]. Call if truly urgent." PROTECTED DEEP BLOCK: • ______ to ______ → [my most important work] THE RULE: Shallow work waits for the next window. Truly urgent = a call. Tomorrow: did batching hold? Reply times still fine? Adjust windows.
Knowledge Check
5 quick questions to make sure the main ideas landed.
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Tomorrow
The 1-Page Meeting Recap That Makes You Look Sharp
Most meetings end with no clear record and quietly fall apart. Send a 3-part recap — decisions, owners, next step — within an hour, and you become the most reliable person in the room.
