Something that has been a big priority for me lately is finding focus. My brain is very scattered by nature, and when I have a lot of things to accomplish, I tend to jump from task to task somewhat sporadically rather than just finishing on task. This is not the most productive way for me to get things done, so I have been consciously trying to focus on one task to completion before moving on to the next task. I think focus is important in every area of life. It is a practice that you should work on daily because having the ability to focus can greatly improve your life.
For many students, focus is not innate. It is hard to focus on important things like school because your brain is not receiving the same instant rewards and gratification that it receives when you play a game or talk to a friend. If you think about training dogs, we realize that dogs respond to short actions and lots of praise and reward. While you can train a dog to stay and wait for your next command, it would be very hard to train your dog to sit and listen to you attentively for an hour. Likely they would fall asleep or leave. This is simply not the way a dog’s brain is wired. Unfortunately for us, the same is true. However, unlike a dog, we do have to be able to sit in a class or meeting and focus on a person speaking and be responsible for actually synthesizing that information into a useful take away. This is hard for adults, and it is exponentially harder for kids.
So if we know this about ourselves, why have we built a society in which you are rewarded for being able to sit through 16-24 years of school and another 30-50 years of meetings? The answer might be that we are gluttons for punishment, or it might be that that is an unavoidable way for us to learn and work. Knowing that this will be a significant portion of our lives, why not take some steps to get better at it? If your job involves moving a heavy box from one part of the room to another, and the first time you do so, you struggle greatly. You might be compelled to join a gym to build the necessary muscles to complete your job. This makes sense, right? Similarly, if your job requires a specific license or certification, you would obviously obtain the appropriate training and documentation necessary for your job. If your work requires business formal attire, you wouldn’t think twice about going out and purchasing the correct wardrobe. These are all parts of being successful in that job. So why shouldn’t we have to have the same level of mastery or practice on our focus?
Focus is something that can be developed without a gym or a trainer or a therapist. You have the power within yourself to start improving your focus today. Add three minutes to your morning routine. Sit up in your bed and think about three things you want to accomplish that day. Set a time on your phone and make yourself think through these things for three minutes. Go over what the tasks are, how you will accomplish them, and when they should be completed. Three minutes doesn’t sound like a long time, but this task will feel like it is going on forever.
The purpose of this task isn’t for you to thoroughly think through your goals for the day, although that is a nice side effect. What will happen as you think about these tasks is that your mind will want to wander. You will think multiple times about checking to see how much time is left. You might start thinking about what you want for breakfast and what you will wear that day. That is all normal, and it is where the training occurs. When you catch your mind wandering, acknowledge the distraction, and bring your attention back to your three tasks. As you continue to work at this, it will become easier and easier to focus on those tasks. You will find that your mind wanders less, and the time passes quicker. This is how you train your brain to focus. That’s the beauty of focus; it is that simple to add even just two minutes to your morning and you can greatly improve the focus you have throughout the day. If you find yourself easily distracted, give this exercise a try. Today is your day to take control of your focus.
- Bria