Over the last 23 years or so, our attention spans have dropped from 2 and a half minutes to just 47 seconds.
Since 2003, Dr. Gloria Mark’s team at the University of California, Irvine has been measuring people’s attention spans when on a screen – and we have become steadily more distracted.
The idea behind focus has drifted so much in the 21st century. With endless distractions around us, it’s really hard to focus on just one thing.
So where do we start building up our resistance again?
There was a time when I couldn’t concentrate on my work for more than 10 minutes. I often found myself doing anything but what I was supposed to be doing – checking my Instagram, sending out texts, playing Candy Crush.
But I’ve found a few simple things that have massively helped me towards mastering the art of focus, and I wanted to share them in case they can help you to improve yours.
6 Key Points to Take Your Focus to the Next Level
1. Understand Your Level of Focus.
Before you go out and try to increase your focus, you need to understand your relationship with it.
It’s just like refilling your car’s tank at the gas station. If you don’t know much you’ve left, how can you figure out how much to fill?
If you can’t figure out the power of your current focus, there is a chance it needs a lot of work. You should be able to easily rewind 2-3 days and analyze your performance. Whether it’s study or work, you need to benchmark yourself.
These are a few signs of good mental focus:
- Being alert
- Completing day’s work on time
- Being able to take vacations often
If you find yourself constantly delaying your deadlines, maybe it’s time to work on it.
If you’re not sure of your last few days of performance, maybe start from now. Keep a journal to track your activities. Once you have a good grip, we can move on to the next step.
2. How to Improve Focus? Eliminate Distractions!
It’s one of the most obvious yet one of the hardest things to do when you’re learning how to improve focus.
Focus is lost due to distractions and 90% of the distractions are around you.
Take your phone as an example.
- How often do you grab it to check if you’ve received any new notifications or personal messages?
- Pretty often, right?
Stop it!
When focusing is your goal, leaving your phone behind is one of the lifesaving tricks. If possible, put it somewhere that you cannot easily access. A friend or a colleague might be able to help you in this regard.
Then focus on other distractions. Construction noise from the nearby property, perhaps. It’s nothing you can stop. But you can certainly put some earplugs on to minimize the noise.
Then comes the internal distractions.
- You might be worried about something.
- Or, you’re just tired.
- Or, you can’t find enough reasons to work so hard.
These are often much harder to deal with than external distractions. So, how to improve focus?
Mindfulness is often the answer to this complicated question.
3. Practice Mindfulness and Meditation.
When we say we can’t focus, it means our mind is wandering around somewhere else while our body is stuck in the same place.
It’s a surreal but very common phenomenon. And you can tackle it with mindfulness.
Mindfulness is the practice of bringing our mind and body together.
It’s often achieved through meditation. Meditation relaxes our body by relieving tension from the muscles. And when you actively become aware of your surroundings, it becomes easy to be one mind-body entity.
Set aside a time during the day to practice mindfulness in your journey to learn how to improve focus.
It will take time.
But if you’re persistent enough with yourself, you’ll eventually master the art. And the focus will follow.
4. Cut Down on Multitasking and Learn How to Improve Focus.
Multitasking is the future, right?
Well, as tempting as it may sound to get so much done in so little time, not everyone is built for multitasking. And if you’re having issues with your focus while multitasking, chances are you’re one of them.
But it’s nothing to feel bad about. While some people will be more efficient doing multiple tasks at once, you can beat them by focusing on just one.
And you can start with breaking down your day’s tasks.
- Make a list of all the things that need your focus.
- Do them without thinking about the others.
- Check off the box.
- Repeat.
Again, it will take time to adapt. But you’ll start to notice the difference in your focus very soon. As your mind is not flooded with everything at once, you’ll be able to focus more on your current task.
5. Take Breaks.
Just because you’re trying to learn how to improve focus doesn’t mean you’re not allowed breaks.
In fact, it’s the opposite. It’s healthier to take breaks in between tasks rather than doing all at once.
It will take some practice to understand what your focus duration is.
- Once you get the hang of it, take a 10-minute break.
- Go for a walk.
- Get some fresh air.
For example, if you notice that you tend to get distracted after an hour of work, that’s your focus duration. So, schedule breaks every hour to clear your mind and regain focus.
6. Consider Your Diet.
As unlikely as it may seem, your diet has a direct relation with your focus.
Almost 60% of the human brain is fat. And if you’ve been consuming a low-fat diet for years, your focus is bound to take a hit.
What you can do is include more brain healthy fats into your diet. Nuts, seeds, berries and fatty fish are all considered brain-supporting foods, and a diet rich in these could lead to improved focus and concentration.
Another thing you can try is intermittent fasting. It supposedly increases your focus by letting your body concentrate all the energy on the task at hand rather than digesting your breakfast, among other benefits.
Are You Ready to Improve Your Focus?
Not everyone feels the need to learn how to improve focus.
You did because you want to become better in life. And I think that you’re on the right track. Just cut down on your distractions, eat healthy food, and practice to be happy with life. You’ll be amazed to see the sheer power of your focus when you destroy each task at hand!
Updated from Mar 5, 2023
Photo by Tima Miroshnichenko
