In the era of tik-tok and Instagram where every motion of your finger is a gateway to another world entirely, with vast multitudes of stimulus always available within an arm’s reach, focus is something that becomes very hard to build and retain.
In fact, studies have actually shown that notifications are one of the biggest enemies of concentration. Being overloaded by different types of information, instructions, updates, requests, and so on is actually detrimental to productivity and mental wellbeing. Our immersion in the world of never-ending stimulation leads to an inability to build focus and this directly affects our capability to meet goals. Writing an essay within the prescribed deadline has never been harder when there is a digital world that is always in flux, twenty-four-seven, never waiting for us or our priorities.
And not only that, with age, with stress, with changes in what stage and phase of our lives we’re in, the ability to create and retain focus and concentration fluctuates. There’s never an end to distractions or other priorities that keep playing on in the back of our minds while we struggle to do one task.
How do we build focus when we make up our mind to knock something off our to-do list? What are the ways to build focus for staying goal-oriented?
Read on to discover 3 ways to get started:
- Start Doing Your Tasks With Intention: It may seem easier to do two tasks at the same time and that way both of them are just over with, yet there is a catch to the speed and efficiency this might give us! The catch is that this makes our brain sort of autopilot through the tasks instead of actually focusing. This means that there’s no opportunity to build focus and practice is key to actually being in the habit of focusing. Secondly, the lack of focus leads to more scope for errors which may even lead to your goal not being met or result in a setback!
Doing your tasks slowly, deliberately, with the intention of meeting the goal at hand is what helps build focus. To do one thing at a time with the goal of completing that task alone helps you do it better, practise focus, and minimize errors!
- Meditate: This might seem a bit difficult, so maybe use an app or a guided meditation podcast or video to help you centre your thoughts at the beginning. Meditation helps us quieten the racing thoughts in our brain and take stock of what is actually going on within us. Practising meditation daily can help build an acute awareness of one’s self and surroundings. Meditation can help you discover your potential of generating focus and concentration from scratch, it can help you harness this potential towards your goals.
- Rest: This is really crucial for building focus. If you are too tired to do a task, it will probably make you more likely to succumb to distraction or leave the task midway. Maintaining focus is also really hard when you have been at it for hours without breaks or rest. Therefore, being well-rested can actually be good for focus as it helps refresh your mind and readies it for new tasks.
Without being able to focus, we would never be getting closer to our goals, completing any tasks, or feeling productive. And just as work deserves our full concentration, so do other aspects of our life such as friendships, family time, or even self-care. Applying these three tips to build focus in all aspects of our lives including those which are personal or intimate can allow us to make space for more authentic, intense, and memorable experiences!