We’ve all been there, sitting at our desk at work, trying to focus, just to find our minds floating around the room. Even when you have an important task to concentrate on, you just can’t do it. These situations can be very frustrating and quite harmful for your career. Concentrating is a great skill to have but also one that’s not easy to acquire or practice. Luckily, you have this little guide to fall back on when you need to boost focus and tackle your work tasks with all your might.
Set priorities
No matter if you’re using good-old pen and paper, an online calendar or an app, writing all your tasks down is a great way to organize and keep your head in the game. Once you have all the tasks written down, set priorities and tackle the most important ones first. These are most likely some bigger or harder to complete tasks, but if you dedicate attention to them early on, you won’t procrastinate or push them for tomorrow.
Practice a 2-minute rule
This rule can save lives: if you can do something in 2 minutes, do it instantly. During your workday, many small tasks will pop up and fill up your to-do list. If a task can be finished in less than 2 minutes, don’t put it on a backburner. For instance, if you just got an email that requires an answer, or you need to fill out a form, do that task right away and avoid feeling torn and overburdened.
Listen to your body
In general, people produce the best work when they are feeling rested and alert. However, this period of focus comes at different times for everyone. Some are most productive after lunch when they’ve fully recovered from sleeping, while others always choose to finish their work as soon as they come to the office. Listen to your body and its natural biorhythm. Take note of your peak concentration hours and try to tackle the hardest and most important tasks during these times.
Take breaks
In many cases, the only thing that you need to regain your focus and improve performance is a little time away from your work. When you feel like your mind is wandering, take a 5-minute walk, eat a snack or grab coffee with a coworker. Sometimes, taking a break seems impossible since you have so much work to do, but it can boost your brain function and focus and actually allow you to finish everything in time. To take proper breaks, try the Pomodoro Technique. This method recommends you to work for 25 minutes and then take a 5-minute break. Once you complete four cycles, you take a longer break (20-30 minutes).
Hydrate
While we’re hard at work, it’s easy to forget to drink. However, dehydration doesn’t only make us feel uncomfortable, but it also causes fatigue, irritation and even illnesses. When you don’t supply your body with enough fluid, it can’t operate efficiently, so make sure to always have some water near you. If you need an extra push you can grab a tasty nootropic drink that has ingredients like Alpha-GPC, Huperzine-A, DMAE, Gingko Biloba and GABA, all of which boost productivity improve focus and result in better sleep and overall wellbeing. Plus, its pleasant flavour will give you a nice little mood boost.
Minimize multitasking
It might seem more efficient if you multitask, but this habit will divide your attention and you won’t be able to focus on any task. Once you have your priority list in place, it’s best to focus on one task at a time according to their importance.
Filter out distractions
Even if you work from home and don’t have to deal with loud coworkers sharing office gossip or hallway meetings next to your cubicle, noise can still strongly affect your attention. Distractions are present everywhere, even in your home office. If you struggle with household or neighbourhood noises, you can filter out these distractions by listening to instrumental music or using a white noise machine or app.
Distractions come in many forms, not just noise. The main culprits are often phone calls, social media and emails. To minimize them, start an important task and take your work offline. It’s very easy to set your phone to aeroplane mode, turn off notifications and block social media websites. This only needs to be done for a few hours, so you’ll survive.
Clean your workspace
Another way to limit distractions is to keep your workspace clean and organized. Even if you prefer working surrounded by creative mess, subconsciously it’s still dividing your attention. To easily find whatever document or tool you need, organize your workspace and stick to a quick clean-up schedule—5 minutes at the end of your workday is all you need to throw out trash, sort out files and delete junk mail.
Set the right temperature
It’s amazing just how much temperature of the room can affect our ability to concentrate. If you’re working from a company office it might be hard to control the thermostat but you can grab a desk fan or a light sweater. At home, it’s scientifically proven that around 77 degrees are the optimal temperature so find what suits you the best and set your thermostat.
Treat yourself with little rewards
When you know there’s a reward waiting for you, even the most boring tasks might be easier to handle. This is especially important if you have your own business, so give yourself a reward whenever you do a good job. Your small rewards might include a short walk around the neighbourhood while enjoying ice cream, calling a friend to chat or playing your favourite game. Larger tasks like completing a big project or landing an important client require bigger rewards like a weekend getaway or fancy dinner.
If you follow these tips, you will notice an improvement in your concentration and memory which can boost your productivity and result in amazing work results. No matter your job or your title, having better focus can push you even further in your career.
Discover more from Today Headline
Subscribe to get the latest posts to your email.