Concentration is an art form. With so many distractions ready to derail your focus, we all need a little help brushing up on our techniques when it comes to paying attention.
Listen to Coach Bolton!
Here are 5 top tips to get your focus back in check.
Let’s get into it, queen.
1) Take a long hard look at yourself.
Yeah. Let’s get real for a sec. (In a nice, good, positive way that leads us to a solution!)
You’ve gotta assess how strong your mental focus is right now. We’re gonna go out on a limb and say it’s not particularly on fleek… Otherwise you wouldn’t be reading this article now, would you? Also we’re bringing back ‘on fleek’. You can’t stop us.
Good focus:
✅ Staying alert isn’t an issue for you.
✅ You’re a boss at setting goals and breaking tasks up into smaller parts.
✅ You take short breaks, but easily get back to work.
Not so fabby focus:
😓 You’re a serial daydreamer.
😓 Tuning out distractions is a strug.
😓 You easily lose track of your progress.
Wherever your answers fit on these questions - you’re in the right place. Whether your focus needs a little or a LOT of improvement, these tips will help you build up good habits. MEANING, you can slay all day, errday.
2) See ya, distractions!
It sounds obvious, but people do underestimate just how much distractions can mess with their concentration.
If you’re working from home, it could be the sound of the washing machine whirring like it’s about to take off into space. If you’re in an office, it could be Angela coming to your desk to tell you yet again about her dog’s bowel problems over the weekend.
Some distractions are easier sorted than others. Turning off the radio is easy… But trying to get your 7 year old to stop coming into your home office and doing a full blown performance of ‘Skibidi toilet’ is a little harder.
Set aside a specific time and place and request (politely) to be left alone for that period of time. That’s focus time, girlie. Go to a coffee shop or a local library. Don’t forget to bring noise cancelling headphones, on which you can play a lil’ white noise or some wordless LoFi. Or jazz, if you’re fancy. 💅
3) Multitasking is not your friend.
You need to limit your focus.Your attention is like a spotlight. Shine it directly on one location and you can see it clearly.
Give your full attention to one thing at a time. Juggling multiple things can not only lower your productivity - but it can also make you feel mega-anxious. Anxiety is a major contributor when it comes to distraction. Just sayin’.
4) Practise mindfulness.
There’s a reason that meditation and mindfulness have existed for thousands of years. That stuff WORKS. Mindfulness meditation has been shown to boost concentration and focus. What a slay.
People have reported being able to stay on task longer, switch between tasks less frequently, and become efficiency queens when they made a commitment to practising mindfulness.
It can be anything from regular meditation to some deep breathing exercises. Breathing exercises are a vibe because you can literally do them anywhere, any time. (Maybe not if you’re having a ‘who can hold their breath the longest’ competition or diving without a snorkel. But those are about the only exceptions.)
There are plenty of online resources that can help you get started. Apps, YouTube videos, or even a meditation coach are just a few clicks away!
5) Take a cheeky short break.
After a while concentrating on one task, your focus will start to break down. Grab yourself a tea. Take a few minutes away from your laptop, make yourself a sarnie… A quick break is going to help you return to the task at hand with a clearer mind.
Just don’t let short breaks become your frenemy. A short break can become a long break if you’re struggling with motivation and/or discipline. Set a timer if needs be!
The most important thing with all these steps is to keep practising.
You might not get it right every single time, but - like ice cream - good habits take time to form and solidify.
Don’t give up on yourself if you trip up. You've got this!