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Mental focus techniques -

Similarly, acknowledge your concerns about the future, consider how you are experiencing that anxiety in your body, then choose to let it go. We want to train our mental resources to focus on the details of what matters at the moment.

Our minds go in the direction we choose to focus. Take a short break. This also might seem counterintuitive, but when you focus on something for a long time, your focus may begin to die down.

You may feel more and more difficulty devoting your attention to the task. Researchers have found that our brains tend to ignore sources of constant stimulation. Taking very small breaks by refocusing your attention elsewhere can dramatically improve mental concentration after that.

The next time you are working on a project, take a break when you begin to feel stuck. Move around, talk to someone, or even switch to a different type of task.

You will come back with a more focused mind to keep your performance high. Connect with nature. Research has found that even having plants in office spaces can help increase concentration and productivity, as well as workplace satisfaction and better air quality. Finding time to take a walk in the park or appreciating the plants or flowers in your garden can boost your concentration and help you feel refreshed.

Train your brain. Scientific research is starting to amass evidence on the ability of brain training activities to enhance cognitive abilities, including concentration, in adults. Such brain training games for concentration can also help you develop your working and short-term memory, as well as your processing and problem-solving skills.

Examples of such games include jigsaw puzzles, sudoku, chess, and brain-stimulating video games. Start your day with simple exercise and get your body moving.

According to the May issue of the Harvard Men's Health Watch, regular exercise releases chemicals key for memory, concentration, and mental sharpness. Other research found that exercise can boost the brain's dopamine, norepinephrine, and serotonin levels and all these will affect focus and attention.

Individuals who do some form of exercise or sports perform better on cognitive tasks when compared with those who have poor physical health.

Physical movement helps relax the muscles and relieve tension in the body. Since the body and mind are so closely linked, when your body feels better so, too, will your mind. Listen to music. Music has been shown to have therapeutic effects on our brains.

Light music may help you to concentrate better, but some music may distract you. Experts generally agree that classical music and nature sounds, such as water flowing, are good choices for concentration while music with lyrics and human voices may be distracting.

Multiple apps and services offer background music and soundscapes designed for different types of focus and work needs. Eat well. Choose foods that moderate blood sugar, maintain energy, and fuel the brain. Fruits, vegetables, and high-fiber foods can keep your blood sugar levels even.

Reduce sugary foods and drinks that cause spikes and dips in your sugar levels make you feel dizzy or drowsy. Your brain needs lots of good fat to function properly.

Nuts, berries, avocados, and coconut oil are all great ways to get healthy fats into your diet and help your brain run more smoothly. Research has found that foods like blueberries can boost concentration and memory for up to 5 hours after consumption due to an enzyme that stimulates the flow of oxygen and blood to the brain, helping with memory as well as our ability to focus and learn new information.

Leafy green vegetables such as spinach contain potassium which accelerates the connections between neurons and can make our brain more responsive. Set a daily priority. Write down what you want to accomplish each day , ideally the night before, and identify a single priority that you commit to accomplishing.

This will help focus your brain on what matters, tackling the big jobs first and leaving the small stuff till later. Break large tasks into smaller bytes so that you will not be overwhelmed. Identifying true priorities can help relieve distracting anxiety, and achieving small daily goals can wire your brain to achieve success.

Create space for work. Create a calm dedicated space for work , if possible. Not everyone can have a well-appointed office, but desk organizers, noise-canceling headphones, an adjustable monitor, and adjustable lighting can help. Clear clutter out of sight, make it as ergonomic and comfortable as possible, and try to keep your space neat and ventilated.

Use a timer. Train your brain to hyper-focus on a task by using a timer or phone alarm. First, decide what task you want to complete. Set your timer for 20 minutes generally not more than 30 minutes and concentrate on the task.

When the alarm rings take a short break for 5 minutes. You can either take a walk and do some stretching exercise, then reset the timer and start again.

This technique has shown to be effective to improve your concentration. Switch tasks. While we may want to concentrate on a particular task, sometimes we get stuck and our brain needs something fresh to focus on.

Try switching to other tasks or something you love to do. Switching tasks can help you stay alert and productive for a longer period.

Learning how to improve focus and concentration is not something you can achieve overnight. Professional athletes like golfers, sprinters, gymnasts take plenty of time to practice and usually have a coach so that they can concentrate and get the right move at the right moment to achieve excellence.

The first step to strengthen your concentration is to recognize how it is affecting your life. If you are struggling to meet commitments, constantly sidetracked by the unimportant, or not moving toward your aspirations, it is time to get help with concentration so that you can focus on what matters most to you.

Learning how to concentrate at work is essential for succeeding in your career and life. By improving your concentration, you will find that you can accomplish more of what you value and feel better doing it. Just announced! Explore the agenda for Uplift April 10—11 in SF. EN - US English US Deutsch English GB Français.

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Take quiz. Invest in yourself today. Jump to section What is concentration? Factors affecting concentration Conditions related to concentration 15 Ways to improve your concentration. Here are common factors that impact, and 15 ways to improve, focus and concentration.

These can include: Your bedtime routine and sleep hygiene Not getting enough sleep Not eating nutritious meals or sufficient calories throughout the day Having your phone and other electronics within your view Dependents or coworkers needing your attention Your day is structured out of sync with your ultradian rhythm You are overly stressed or burnt out You do not get enough physical activity throughout the day These are just a few examples of reasons you may not be able to concentrate.

Distraction We are bombarded by a constant flow of information, whether new or old, during the process of doing something. Insufficient sleep Scientists have found that lack of sleep can lead to lower alertness , slower thought processes, and reduced concentration.

Insufficient physical activity Have you ever noticed how vigorous exercise leaves you feeling more relaxed and energetic throughout the day? Poor eating habits What we eat contributes to how we feel , including our mental sharpness and clarity, throughout the day. Environmental factors Depending on what you are doing, the environment can affect your focus.

Discrimination at work is linked to high blood pressure. Icy fingers and toes: Poor circulation or Raynaud's phenomenon? You're trying to concentrate, but your mind is wandering or you're easily distracted.

What happened to the laser-sharp focus you once enjoyed? As we age, we tend to have more difficulty filtering out stimuli that are not relevant to the task at hand. Like a computer that slows with use, the brain accumulates wear and tear that affects processing.

This can be caused by a number of physiological stressors such as inflammation, injury to blood vessels especially if you have high blood pressure , the buildup of abnormal proteins, and naturally occurring brain shrinkage.

Underlying conditions. Depression or sleep disorders such as sleep apnea can undermine your ability to concentrate. So can the effects of vision or hearing loss. You waste precious cognitive resources when you spend too much time trying to make out what's written on a page or just hear what someone is saying.

Medication side effects. Some drugs, especially anticholinergics such as treatments for incontinence, depression, or allergies , can slow processing speed and your ability to think clearly.

Excessive drinking. Having too much alcohol impairs thinking and causes interrupted sleep, which affects concentration.

Information overload. We are bombarded with information from TVs, computers, and messages such as texts or emails. When there's too much material, it burdens our filtering system and it's easy to get distracted.

Want a way to boost your attention and focus? Neuropsychologist Kim Willment of Harvard-affiliated Brigham and Women's Hospital suggests a single-task exercise like reading. When it goes off, ask yourself if your mind has wandered. If so, just refocus on what you're reading," she says.

She recommends sitting still for a few minutes each day, closing your eyes, and focusing on your breathing as well as the sounds and sensations around you. Cognitive training. Computerized cognitive training games aim to improve your response times and attention.

Evidence that this works has been mixed. So if you reach a certain level of sustained attention, pushing it to the next level can help improve it, and this may translate to everyday life.

A healthier lifestyle. Many aspects of a healthy lifestyle can help attention, starting with sleep and exercise. There is a direct link between exercise and cognitive ability, especially attention. When you exercise, you increase the availability of brain chemicals that promote new brain connections, reduce stress, and improve sleep.

And when we sleep, we reduce stress hormones that can be harmful to the brain, and we clear out proteins that injure it. Aim for seven to eight hours of sleep each night, and minutes per week of aerobic exercise, such as brisk walking.

Other healthy steps to improve focus: eat a Mediterranean-style diet, which has been shown to support brain health; treat underlying conditions; and change medications that may be affecting your ability to focus. Getting older is out of your control, but healthier living is something you determine, and it may improve concentration.

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Kendra Cherry, MS, is a psychosocial rehabilitation specialist, psychology educator, techniquds author of the "Everything Psychology Book. Rachel Technoques, PhD FTOS, is a Mentap psychologist, clinical assistant professor, speaker, wellness expert fous in eating behaviors, stress management, and health Superfood supplement for anti-aging Matcha green tea for digestion. Superfood supplement for anti-aging on task can Tehniques difficult, but it can flcus particularly challenging when you are surrounded by constant distractions. In today's always-connected world, diversions are nothing more than a click away, which makes it that much more difficult to figure out how to focus. Even during quiet moments, distraction is literally at your fingertips as you find yourself checking your social media notifications or the latest news updates. But being mentally focused is essential for success. The ability to concentrate on something in your environment and direct mental effort toward it is critical for learning new things, achieving goalsand performing well across a wide variety of situations.