We often lecture our kids, employees, colleagues and friends to focus on the task at hand and pay attention to details. But inattention or distractions are a part of our brain conditioning and let’s be true and agree that most of us find it pretty hard to concentrate on even important activities for more than 2 hours at a stretch. Now, the lack of attention might be due to anxiety of not being able to meet an assigned deadline on time or being too hyperactive because of situations that make us excited or even a syndrome called ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Syndrome), which needs assessment.
Whatever maybe the reason, we have to make it a point to calm our senses and get back on track with all our concentration. And to achieve this, you can use a few of these simple but worthy tips.
- Divide your work: This trick works, when you get extremely distracted or lose patience while completing a task, which is a combination of several other different tasks. For example, if you’re decorating your home, you will have to concentrate maybe on the garden or hall or family suite, one at a time, instead of overloading yourself with everything at once.
- Take small breaks: One cannot work on a computer coding system for a continuous 9 hours or direct a documentary for a whole day, without a break. We are humans and short breaks in between work, helps drastically.
- Keep away distractions: Inattention is mostly common due to the distractions around us. Your friend pings on FB and you get hooked to your computer, instead of focusing on studies. So a simple solution is to keep your laptop or cell phone turned off, while you need to concentrate.
- Try breathing exercises: Kapalbati pranayama, the famous breathing exercises and several other breathing techniques actually help to improve your concentration, if practiced with dedication and regularity.
- Decide on goals: If you want to achieve something, set your goals and priorities, for that needed concentration. So if you want to pass the civil services exams, you need to put in some efforts in setting up your goals.
- Opt for counselling: Blaming kids for their attention deficiency disorder or hyperactivity is one way of ignoring a problem, while getting them counselled by a psychiatrist or education counsellor is another good way of helping them focus on day to day activities.
- Set time limits: You want to reduce weight, but are not focused on the exercise and diet plan? Then set time limit for the same and then see how you are able to concentrate on your goals and things improve.
- Sleep right: Just reading about the “8 hour beauty sleep” with no implementation is of no use. Just knowing is not enough, you need to follow. Follow it in your life to stay fit and develop a sharper mind and healthier body, both of which are prime ingredients for concentration power.
- Observe and learn: Ever been to a hospital and observed the patience with which a doctor handles innumerable patients or how a teacher handles her kindergarten kids? Observing such people who can maintain their concentration amid so many distractions, can so many times motivate us and educate us how to stay focused.
- Be yourself: Trying to be someone who is not the ‘real you’ can make you lose confidence, become excited or anxious at times. This in turn reflects on our concentration power. So have faith in yourself and sky will be your limit.