10 Steps to Improve Your Concentration
Now that we’ve discussed a few of the most common reasons for poor concentration, let’s look at some concrete changes you can make to improve your ability to stay sharp and focused.
1. Get Enough Sleep. Ensuring you get enough (as well as restful) sleep can be the single most important step for improving your ability to focus. The National Sleep Foundation recommends 7–9 hours a night; however, let yourself be the best jugde to determine what is enough sleep for you to feel rested. But remember, even one hour less than your optimal amount can drain you as well as your brain of energy the next day.
2. Food as Fuel. According to the American Dietetic Association, skipping breakfast and/or regular meals hurts concentration and mental performance. Jump-starting each day with a nutritious breakfast (think protein and whole grains, not processed white flour and high fructose corn syrup) and then regularly refueling every 3–4 hours is an easy way to improve concentration (and boost your metabolism, too). Also, research from USC suggests certain vitamins may be related to improved cognitive and concentration abilities, among them, iron, magnesium and zinc. Thus, if your diet is not sufficiently varied and/or optimally healhty, consider adding a multivitamin to your daily routine. More recent research is also pointing to the vast benefits of Omega 3’s, so consider adding this to your diet as well (Omega 3 can come from fish, flax seeds, or a supplement).
3. Exercise. Research strongly suggests that regular exercise can dramatically improve concentration, mental alertness, and memory, so maintain or start a fitness routine. Even 30 minutes of daily activity helps, so don’t avoid excercising just becuase you don’t have hours to devote to the gym. Also, if you don’t have large chunks of time, consider spitting your activity into various smaller exercise burts throughout the day (e.g., walk or bike to work, go for a walk during your lunch break or after dinner, etc.) as it’s the cummulative effect of excercising that is most important.
4. Minimize External Distractions. As much as possible within your daily life limit, reduce, or avoid interruptions. For example, try turning off your cell phone or shutting your office door so you can work uninterrupted for a chuck of time. Consider keeping your web browser closed during pre-determined periods and only checking you email on pre-determined intervals. You are more likely to get more things done if you work hard for 45–50 minutes with 10–15 minute breaks than if you are constantly available via phone, text, and email. In these days of currently browsing email, Facebook, and Reddit, this can be a difficult habbit to break, so start by pacing yourself and “allowing” yourself to only look at those site during your predetermined 10–15 minute break.
Remember too that external distractions are sometimes quite subtle but may still have a powerful effect on your cognitive stamina. These can take the form of noises, smells, or even visual cues. Rearrange your desk to avoid these distractors and use white sound machines or earplugs if needed.
5. Maximize Your Peaks. Most people have a particular time of day when they are at their peak. Discover yours and use it to your advantage. Although most people have diurnal rhythms (i.e., daytime peaks), some are more nocturnal. So improve concentration by scheduling projects that require full focus and mental ability during personal peak periods and use your less-than-optimal hours for more routine tasks.
6. Incorporate Time-Management Strategies. One important habit to break is procrastination. By actually getting to work on a particular task you are significantly cutting down on the time spent thinking, dreading, and/or avoiding it. This all amounts to wasted energy that is better spent on the project itself. Think of it as peeling the band-aid off, the more you procrastinate and the slower it goes, the more painful it is in the long run. Also, keep a small to-do list with you (try the notebook function on your smart phone), to keep a list of the things you need to get done so you can stop thinking and obsessing about them, this too will free up cognitive energy to focus on the task at hand.
7. Intend to Concentrate. Ever lose your car in a parking lot or forget where you put your keys, wallet, or cellphone? It’s quite likely that this is NOT a sign of early Alzheimer’s, but instead a red flag of lack of attention, focus, and concentration. Remember, we have many cognitive functions running on autopilot (e.g., motor memory, breathing, talking, walking, etc.), so we can free up same cognitive “space” for those that require attention and effort. So try telling yourself to remember and to concentrate, you might be surprised how powerful this approach can be.
8. Practice 1-Minute “Selective Refocusing.” Several times daily, focus on a specific sound (or visual cues) for several seconds (e.g., a voice or the hum of the AC), then deliberately switch to another sound (e.g., outside traffic). Switch repeatedly every minute for a couple of minutes, actively focusing on the target sounds as you actively block out others. Your brain is very much like any other muscle in your body, the more you use it in a specific manner, the stronger it becomes in that regard.
9. Mindfulness. Train your brain to be self-aware, including of moments when it wanders and loses focus. Practice noticing these instances and gently bring yourself back to focusing on your intended target (be it a meeting, a task, of even your breath in a meditation exercise). When your mind takes detours, close your eyes, inhale slowly and deeply and tell yourself, “Be here now.” This simple practice, borrowed from Zen Buddhism, can help you return to the moment.
10. Take a Concentration-Oriented Class. Yoga, mindfulness meditation, and other mind-body classes are among the disciplines where concentration is a built-in part of performance. Apply the techniques you learn to other situations to improve concentration.
