FOCUS
Five More Times:
- If you can work through chaos and distractions without missing a beat; you are well on your way to mastering concentration. If you are frustrated and want to give up, teach yourself the number or five more times rule. Concentrate. Tell yourself, I will quit when I have finished five more pages, written five more articles, or have to pick up for five more minutes. Build stamina by pushing past the point of frustration. Find your second wind. Just do not give up even when it seems impossible. Stretch your attention and keep working. Expand your brain and build that attention span.
One “Think” at a Time
- Feeling like you are overwhelmed? There is mind chatter that is interfering with everything you think about? Force your mind to deal with those items it cannot refuse. In other words, tell you brain that “yes” it can do a task, “stop” worrying about lesser priorities, and give our mind a “duty” to perform that will move your thinking back to the immediate problem. One very good tactic in learning to concentrate is to write things down. Have you found that when you write things down you no longer worry about them? The “paper” is now the worry medium. Your brain can now focus on the current question or problem.
Conquer Procrastination
- If you do not want to concentrate on a subject or you put off a project ask three questions, “Do I really need to do this? Do I need to do it? Will it be easier later?” Just asking yourself these questions will kick your mind in gear and give you the drive to apply yourself mentally. Your task will not go away and delaying it will only add to your problems. Concentrate on finishing what you have started.
Use your Hands Physically to Provide Concentration
- Sounds a bit unusually but if you want to prepare for an exam and need to give it all your concentration, try cupping your hands around your eyes. You have now focused your vision on one thing; you study guide or textbook. Things are now literally out of sight and thus out of mind. Concentrate on the task at hand. Try this when doing a physical test. For just a moment place your hands on the side of your eyes and look at the chaos you need to clean up.
As weird as it may sound, do this when talking to someone and you need to focus on what they are saying. Of course, it may throw them off track, but you are now totally able to concentrate and everything else is “blinded out.”
See things as if you are viewing the for the first time
- How hard do you concentrate on something new? You are trying to determine who, what, why and where. Your concentration is focused on only one thing – determining what the newness is. It has been said that when you perceive something new you will concentrate to disseminate and store. Example? Look at the sky in full concentration. It is new. You are now finding different details that you have never saw before. This is a form of concentration. Practice it on a daily basis. If you find you don’t like what you are looking at, then change it and concentrate on something else.
Concentrate on what you are seeing or doing and let your mind go directly to that task. Stop thinking about what you are going to eat in a minute or the paper you have to write in the morning. Focus on what you are doing at that exact moment.
See where you are; concentrate on your surroundings. Study what is in the room and the people next to you. Marvel at what is there and think, “I am seeing this for the first time in my life.” Sad to say, you are probably “seeing” it for the first time.
Don’t think FOCUS is “Pollyanna”; use it and you will find it really works.
Power of Concentration
Concentration, meditation and mindfulness conjure up images of sitting in a yoga retreat and humming. Not so. Meditation is more about concentration which is the ability to quiet your mind and focus your attention on what is going on in the present. Dismiss distractions that come into your life and just “think.” Mindful thoughts can lead to improvements in your memory and your cognitive functions.
- Small doses of concentration can bring on changes of how we feel and think. Concentration is very basic. As you sit and concentrate or meditate, or whatever you choose to name it, you will be able to focus on breathing, acknowledging and releasing random and interruptive thoughts. Actively thinking will improve concentration. When your concentration is improved you will be able to stay on task longer and stop jumping from one tack or idea to another. Learn to spend your time more efficiently with concentration.
- Concentration is more than just emotion, thinking or behavioral. There are physical benefits to concentration. Studies have proven that improved concentration leads to enhanced connectivity of your brain”s attention networks. You will have greater attention spans and the ability to ignore distractions is enhanced. Your attention networks communicate better and you can handle interruptions.
- Learn the ability to pay attention by using concentration. When you sit and quietly think or focus on one object you are concentrating. You will find that by developing concentration skills you will be able to solve problems quickly and instead of running around in a quandary you already know the answers. Concentration gives you the resources or the power you need to speed up thinking processes.
- You never stop thinking or leaning even if you are 80 years old. The structure of your brain changes and develops continually. Concentrate, train your mind and you can continue to think “younger.” The cells in your brain will actually become more efficient and able to multi-task.
- Concentration can strengthen the areas of the brain that are staring to decline cognitively. Learn to think more in line with a detached approach. You are investing in a sound mental future if you concentrate.
Concentration involves focusing the mind on tasks or series of tasks while at the same time ignoring other distractions and stimuli. Learn how to sustain you attention span and your concentration on one task at hand. Do it until you are finished. Practice focusing your attention by truly concentrating. Concentrate on one thing at a time, use your hands to physically guide your concentration, and view everything as if you are seeing if for the first time.
