Often, we find it difficult to stay focused on what we are doing. Whether studying, working or carrying out any type of task, our mind starts to wander or think about problems and it is almost impossible for us to concentrate on what we are doing. If this happens to us, we should not despair or resign ourselves to the fact that it will always be like this, since concentration, like many other faculties, can be exercised. Below, we present a series of exercises that help you increase and maintain your concentration.
Sometimes we find it impossible or very difficult to concentrate when we are working. If we finally manage to focus our attention on what we are doing, it is also difficult for us to maintain it, and soon our mind wanders away from the task we are carrying out which, in the long run, means delays in work that may force us to to spend more time in the office, make mistakes that we did not make before, which decreases the quality of our work and we end up mentally exhausted from the effort of concentrating on what we are doing.
The causes of this are many and varied, and to avoid it we must analyze what the cause is. factor that is influencing our lack of concentration in order to solve the problem.
Excess technology: Constantly checking email, mobile phones, consulting the Internet or seeing what has been written on social networks means that we are aware of many stimuli without concentrating on any of them. When you work, put your phone aside and check your email from time to time to focus on what you are doing.
Lack of motivation: It is not easy to concentrate on what we find boring or what we are not interested in, either because you perform monotonous tasks or because your work does not attract you at all. If you can’t change jobs, you can talk to your boss or human resources to direct your duties toward an area that interests you more.
Concerns: It is very difficult to stop thinking about an issue that has us worried, be it family or work. In this case, relaxation exercises or trying to stop the thought spiral can help us.
Lack of sleep: It is usually the most common cause and the only solution is to rest enough hours at night or take a few minutes of nap in the afternoon.
Improve concentration level
Living with a high level of concentration in daily life helps you enjoy the present. And, although in a common context, many people associate the term concentration with studies and knowledge, the reality is that you can be focused on anything. For example, when you meet up for coffee with a friend, it is excellent to focus on him and the conversation, instead of distracting yourself internally and thinking about your things.
Likewise, at work, you must think about what you are doing but not in problems of the future or worries of the past. Concentration, in essence, allows you to live in the present, therefore, given this power, fear of the future, stress and anxiety are also reduced. As you focus all your attention on the power of now, all fears of yesterday and tomorrow disappear as if by magic.
On the other hand, in the society of haste and anxiety, it is also common for us to make the mistake of wanting to do several things at the same time. You may be talking to your partner, while you write down something important in a notebook and at the same time, you are answering a phone call. It is simply better to go slower, and don’t accumulate things because in that case, attention is dispersed in many different aspects.
In addition, concentration is also improved by learning to be silent, thinking and internalizing aspects of each day. The time of night, before going to bed, can be the perfect occasion to write in a journal what good things you take away from that day. This way you will feed your happiness and your dose of well-being every day with great strength and enthusiasm. Concentration is your own work that only depends on you.
Focus on success
Imagine that you are playing golf and you have to take the next shot to get the ball into the hole. You have the entire expanse of grass before you and at the end you can see your goal, the flag. To your right you can see a sandbank and to the left a small lake. You look left and right, contemplating the obstacles you have to overcome and prepare to strike.
Without warning, your head begins to wonder what will happen if the ball lands in the sand, and if once there you can’t hit it, if that will mean making a fool of yourself in front of the spectators, if that will call into question your ability as a golfer and little by little you become more and more nervous.
When you get ready to hit again, your head travels towards the small lake and you can’t think about anything other than the fact of what will happen if your ball falls in the lake, if that will make others stop appreciating you, it will make you a failure, you won’t be able to stand it and you will get depressed, etc.
Finally, you get in front of the ball to hit it and put it in the hole, but all you really think about is not putting the ball in the sandbar and not throwing it in the lake. All your mental energy is concentrated on it, so much so that you have forgotten your goal. When you hit, your ball will end up in the sand or water.
This is what often happens to us when we have to face a challenge. We stop again and again to think about everything that can go wrong, about all the obstacles we encounter and we forget to focus on what really matters, the objective for which we are fighting. Focus.
Easy exercises to improve concentration
Think of a simple geometric figure, such as a square, a circle or a triangle and try to imagine it as accurately as possible and try to keep it in your mind for a while while you carry out other daily tasks. Once you can do it easily, you can try combining two shapes with each other (a circle inside a square, for example) and hold that image for a while.
Grab a book and start counting all the words in a paragraph if it is long or in a set of paragraphs if they are short. When you finish, write down the number of words and then count them again to see if you have done it correctly. Repeat this exercise every day and you will notice how little by little your concentration improves, even in the most tedious tasks.
Visualize a dot of the color you want and keep the image of it in your mind for at least thirty seconds. With practice, try to increase the time until you reach, for example, five minutes.
Take an everyday object that you don’t pay much attention to, such as a fork, and concentrate on it, observing it from all points of view, turning it, noticing its touch, its temperature, its smell, its taste… focus all your attention on it while you perform this task.
This article is merely informative, at PsychologyFor we do not have the power to make a diagnosis or recommend a treatment. We invite you to go to a psychologist to treat your particular case.
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