Increasing concentration: practical tips

Most people are designed in such a way that they cannot do two or more different things at the same time. We can only focus on one thing at a time. But sometimes we don’t even have enough strength to fully concentrate on the task at hand. To prevent such absent-mindedness, it is worth practicing the development of concentration. Many years of studying the functioning of the brain have made it possible to develop many ways to strengthen memory and attention. Thanks to this, each person can choose an exercise that will allow them to improve and develop. Below we suggest that you familiarize yourself with the most effective ways to develop your own ability to concentrate.

Reasons for deterioration in concentration

Decreased attention and absent-mindedness causes a lack of oxygen reaching the brain.
The cause may also be simple fatigue or overload with new information. These are fairly common reasons that are easy to get rid of. It's enough to just have a good rest. But there is another situation, which is expressed by a loss of concentration. Asthenic syndrome, or dysfunction of the brain, is the result of a negligent attitude towards one’s own health. The reasons for the appearance of this unpleasant process are due to several reasons.

• Frequent stress and anxiety cause exhaustion of the nervous system.
• Insufficient intake of vitamin B12 into the body.
• Problems with the endocrine system negatively affect brain function.
• Decrease and weakening of immunity.
• Death of brain cells after injury or as a result of Alzheimer's disease.

Medications

How to increase your concentration? There are several effective pharmaceutical products that have almost no or minor side effects.

1. Glycine is a popular drug, especially among students. It relieves stress and increased nervous excitement, improves brain performance.
2. Vitrum Memory is recommended to be taken if intellectual abilities and attention deteriorate. This herbal medicine supplies the brain with oxygen, increasing blood circulation in this organ.
3. Undevit - a dragee based on a complex of vitamins A, B, C, E, P, produces a versatile effect.
4. Aminalon restores nervous processes and removes toxins that form in the brain from the body.
5. Bilobil is recommended for insomnia and decreased intelligence, as well as for getting rid of fear and anxiety. The drug improves oxygen supply to the brain.
6. Intellan is a herbal preparation useful for depression, decreased intellectual capabilities and forgetfulness.
7. Ginkgo biloba is recommended for memory and attention, insomnia and dizziness.

How to improve memory and attention

Proper focus on a specific thought, goal or subject depends on three important factors:

1. Comfortable environment. Absence of external and internal irritants, convenience, necessary furnishings.
2. Nutrition and healthy lifestyle. Mandatory walks in the fresh air, enough water and food rich in vitamins.
3. Way of thinking. The ability to focus on one thing, highlighting priority tasks.

These three points ensure the reliable operation of think tanks. But even with all the necessary conditions, sometimes there is absent-mindedness and forgetfulness. Then we should think about how to improve memory and force the brain to concentrate on the object we need unquestioningly.

Music for the brain

To improve memory and brain function in general, you can listen to music. It has been proven that classical and relaxing melodies contribute to the formation of a stable emotional background, while stimulating memory, thinking and attention.

In the mid-20th century, the effect of binaural beats was discovered in the world - an empty sound that our brain perceives as natural low-frequency beats. Listening to these sounds, both on their own and in the background with classical music, will allow you to better remember the information you are studying and solve various mental problems with great success.

Ways to increase concentration and attention

An adult needs to constantly remain collected and have a sufficient level of focus on the goal. There are many different options for increasing concentration. Each of them is aimed at using brain resources at 100%. By following the necessary instructions regularly, you can significantly increase your inner potential.

Planning

Train yourself to make action plans before starting any new endeavor.
By following the points of the plan, you will not only learn to concentrate on the task. This will help monitor progress towards the goal, which has a positive effect on the level of self-control. Thanks to carefully thought out steps, you will be able to avoid being scattered on unnecessary things. In addition, by clearly visualizing the desired result, you will concentrate more accurately on the task. A practical approach will increase your focus with each item completed.

In addition to the necessary actions, do not forget about the time frame. This will help you mobilize your own strength to meet the scheduled time. You are guaranteed to be organized and collected if you force yourself to follow the plan without deviations or concessions.

Set goals

Start your morning with a clear vision of your goals for the day.
These can be the most ordinary tasks that you perform without thinking. However, the habit of going towards the intended result will have a positive effect on the implementation of more ambitious plans. Thanks to cultivating the right direction towards goals, it is easy to increase concentration. You won’t even notice how after some time you will be able to quickly and clearly solve problems that previously seemed unimaginably difficult.

Meditation

A simple and effective way to ensure proper brain function is meditation.
Calmness, correct posture and breathing control successfully help you relax and concentrate at the same time. It is important that during this time you are not disturbed by any extraneous sounds or smells. At the initial stages, you will not be able to abstract yourself from them. 20 minutes of meditation a day is enough to improve attention in an adult. Also, controlling your own breathing helps you learn to concentrate on only one task and ignore all the others. This is the key to successful brain function.

Proper sleep

To be able to fully rest, you should provide yourself with comfortable sleeping conditions.
First of all, take care of a comfortable “rookery”. It is worth throwing away old, lumpy and sagging mattresses with protruding springs. The ideal option is a modern orthopedic base that conveniently adapts to the parameters of your body. Don’t forget that you need to prepare for bed correctly.

• Avoid using gadgets, watching movies and playing computer games at least an hour before bedtime.
• Don't overeat. The digestive system should have time to rest overnight. In addition, a slight feeling of hunger will give you calm dreams that do not disturb the nervous system.
• Ventilate the room. Even in frosty weather, be sure to open the window for 10-15 minutes. Fresh air has a beneficial effect on healthy sleep.
• Train yourself to go to bed and get up at the same time. In this way, the body will learn to fully rest in the allotted time, and you won’t have to wonder: how to increase mental clarity?

Proper nutrition

By choosing healthy and nutritious foods, you increase the overall health and capabilities of the body. But for the brain, the main fuel is glucose. It is important to monitor your blood sugar levels and not allow them to deviate too much from the norm. To maintain performance and increase concentration, be sure to include the following foods in your diet:

• Fatty fish: tuna, mackerel, salmon, sardines.
• Cocoa and dark chocolate.
• Baked goods made from wholemeal flour.
• Broccoli and cauliflower.
• Eggs.
• Flax and pumpkin seeds.

Brain exercises

If you're wondering how to improve your concentration when you have little free time, here are a few helpful exercises to consider.

1. Use washing dishes as a way to force your brain to focus on the task. When washing an item, record and mentally describe your actions. This way you will learn to completely immerse yourself in the work process without extraneous thoughts.
2. While doing work or reading a book, keep a piece of paper and a pen next to you. Every time your thoughts stray from the task at hand, make a mark on the sheet. This will help control your concentration level. After some time of such actions, you will notice that there are fewer and fewer marks. This is called mindfulness of concentration.
3. While walking, focus on what is happening next to you, be it an object or phenomenon. Speak out all the moments mentally. For example, “A shaggy dog ​​in a black collar ran by. The owner is following him.” or “I walked past a car and it had a flat tire.”

Genetics and heredity

Scientists have noted that a person’s ability to concentrate without much effort can be transmitted at the genetic level.
By examining your particular set of genes, you can determine how difficult it will be for you to force your brain to focus. Thanks to modern equipment, carrying out such an analysis is not difficult. Thus, thanks to genetic research, you can determine your level of resistance to distractions. Thanks to this, you can build a plan for training your brain centers to increase your productivity.

Organization of the work process: refusal of multitasking

Don't try to grab everything that is available to you at once.
When you multitask, you run the risk of failing everything. Only in very rare cases and under extremely fortunate circumstances is it possible to cope with all the work being done simultaneously. Learn to productively plan the process of completing tasks. Teaching yourself to be focused and consistent is very useful. Prioritize importance and urgency. You should not start a new business without first completing the previous one.

The right workplace

Your personal desk or office at work is a place where nothing should distract you from completing your tasks.
You should not clutter your work surface with foreign objects that are not related to your specialization. This will make it easier for you to focus and significantly increase your productivity. Having a permanent workspace at home is a very good approach to developing concentration. You need to organize an area where you will do your work or study. Each item in this area should have a certain functionality. At the same time, remember that it is absolutely forbidden to work anywhere else in the house.

Get rid of irritants

Avoid excessively loud or rhythmic music while working. If you cannot practice in silence, choose smooth melodies without vocal accompaniment. At home, warn your family that you will be busy for a certain time and there is no need to distract you. In the office, while doing an important task, try to turn off the ringer on your phone.

Take breaks

If progress towards your goal requires a lot of time, do not forget to take rest breaks. This could be a short walk or a coffee break. After sitting at your desk, stretch and do a few simple exercises to improve your blood circulation. Otherwise, you risk overstrain and weakening of brain activity.

Dietary supplements for the brain

NSP

Contains plant components (ginkgo biloba, gogotu kola, bacopa), lecithin and omega-3.

Dietary supplements can normalize the nervous system, improve memory and attentiveness in adults.

These remedies are used by people who have suffered a stroke or other brain diseases.

Doppelherz

Combines Ginkgo Biloba plant extract and vitamins B1, B2, B6. Together, these substances can improve cerebral circulation, strengthen the walls of blood vessels, improve memory and attention.

Evalar

It is represented by a wide range of dietary supplements and tablets containing a number of useful vitamins (groups C, D, E, P, B) and elements.

Thanks to the composition of dietary supplements, blood circulation in the brain improves, at the same time, memory and mental activity in general become more effective.

Solgar

It has been producing its products using unique technologies since 1947. It is represented by a wide range of nutritional supplements, which include herbal ingredients, vitamins and microelements that help the brain work more efficiently.

Doing only one thing at a time

Active people boast the ability to do several things at the same time, considering this property an enviable honor. While multitasking can help one achieve career heights, it makes one prone to making unintentional mistakes. In terms of concentration, multitasting also has major disadvantages. The main negative factor is constant distraction.

In solving the problem of how to learn not to be distracted and concentrate, you need to do tasks one by one, step by step, and determine priorities. The habit of starting with simple tasks and ending with complex things will have to be abandoned. Tasks that require a lot of attention and creativity should be solved first, ideally in the first half of the day, when the brain is still fresh.

At the same time, important, priority tasks should not be left until they become urgent. Otherwise, their implementation puts a lot of pressure, the person is in a state of stress, in which it becomes several times harder to focus attention.

Exercises

Adults can try different games to improve concentration. There are many different challenging sudokus, crosswords and other logic games. Sometimes it is advisable to set a time limit for solving problems, but it should not be too short so as not to encourage mistakes.

Training for adults:

• On a piece of paper, print the numbers without spaces. Your task is to cross out, for example, all threes, even or odd numbers within a certain time.
• In your head, count from 100 to 1, then vice versa.
• The next lesson is about training your visual perception. Take any object in your hands, look at it for 2 minutes, trying to concentrate only on it, remember the slightest details. Then put the object aside, close your eyes, imagine it, recreate its appearance in your memory (try to do this as carefully as possible).

Less caffeine, more exercise and water

This may seem paradoxical, but giving up coffee will help you learn to concentrate. By relying on triple lattes, you may find that after the caffeine wears off it will be even more difficult to focus than before drinking the coffee. The brain begins to work with the awareness of the need for a dose of caffeine.

A much better stimulant is physical exercise. Studies have shown that physical activity improves concentration and helps people with attention disorders, particularly ADHD. This is partly due to the release of certain chemicals in the brain that affect memory, learning, and the ability to concentrate.

While coffee is not a drink suitable as a focus stimulant, the liquid needs to be supplemented. Nothing will benefit your brain more than plain water.

A 2012 US study found that even mild dehydration (so slight that a person doesn't feel it) can lead to inattention. The ability of female test subjects who did not drink enough water to pay attention to questions on multiple tests was significantly impaired. So drink water, it will help you stay alert.

Meditation

Meditation is a technique of deepening concentration, focusing on one stimulus or action, ignoring all other stimuli.

Classical methods are based on concentrating consciousness on alternating exhalations and inhalations.

Other methods use external stimuli as a focus for concentration. A simple exercise for beginners is clock meditation, where a person with his eyes closed listens to the ticking of a clock counting down the current seconds. To make sure that you are not distracted by other topics, you can count the ticks and, opening your eyes, check whether the counted time matches the one shown on the clock. It may not be possible to focus on the ticking the first or second time; It is important to continue to learn concentration and improve this skill.

A study in which participants meditated 5 days a week for 20 minutes a day found that people's attention, concentration, memory and stress management improved significantly. In addition, these people showed lower levels of depression, anxiety, anger, and significant improvements in mood.

If you want to use meditation to improve your concentration, follow a few simple steps. Don't meditate with a full stomach. Focus solely on your breathing. Proceed as follows:

• find a pleasant, not noisy place;
• sit on the floor or on a chair, place your palms on your knees;
• close your eyes, take a deep breath;
• exhale slowly;
• repeat several times, open your eyes.

This technique will purify your thoughts and spirit. After meditation you will feel calmer and cleaner.

Mental activities

Attention can be compared to a muscle that is strengthened through training. And, just as there are exercises for the body, there are exercises for improving attention. One way to learn concentration is a simple exercise in which, by comparing almost identical images, you need to find some differences between them. If tasks seem easy, you can make them more difficult by setting a time limit.

The next option is mirror reading or writing. These exercises require constant concentration and provide instant feedback, because when the thought deviates, the direction of the font immediately changes, you make a visible mistake.

Concentration training for a child

Learning methods to improve concentration is necessary not only for adults, but also for children. This ability is especially important at school, when you need to quickly concentrate on a lesson or when doing homework. For younger children, practicing focusing is a good start to preparation for school life.

Exercises for the little ones:

• Read any story to your child - the baby will receive instructions to clap his hands whenever he hears a certain name or the name of an object.
• Together with your child, look for differences in similar images, and train him to accurately redraw them in accordance with the original drawing.
• Together, create long, colorful, meaningful sentences that you alternate when reciting - each adding one word to the sentence and repeating what was said earlier.

Exercises for older children:

• Write a short text (2-3 paragraphs) in which you make various mistakes. Their complexity should correspond to the age of the child. You can also practice spelling (assuming your child is familiar with it), including dashes and commas between sentences. The goal of the game is to highlight errors and discrepancies in the text.
• The principle of the next method is similar to the first, slightly edited. But in the text, the child looks for incorrect letters and symbols, but words. Use longer text, one page in size. Double the words in sentences. While reading, the child should highlight all meaningless doublings. For example: “I went to school and I met my friend.”
• Write words in which the letters are reversed. The child's task is to decipher the words. To train younger children, use only 3-4 letters (sel - forest, kovl - wolf), for older children you can use longer words (fortekal - potato). In a simpler version, you can store the beginning or ending of a word, which will indicate a possible solution.
• Great for practicing games (checkers, chess). Any board game that requires patience and following the rules will do. Juggling and other similar activities are suitable for physical activity.

What prevents you from concentrating?

If a person has absolutely no interest and motivation for an activity, then he will put off the task as much as possible. Laziness and idleness can also make it difficult to concentrate. The longer a person puts things off until later, the more difficult it is for him to even begin to complete the task. You need to learn to motivate yourself and control yourself. Self-control will help you do everything on time and not put off urgent tasks until the last minute.

At work, distractions can include colleagues, social networks, pop-up advertisements on all websites. At home, my husband, children, and chores are often distracting. Washing, cleaning, ironing, cooking - all this makes it much more difficult to concentrate on one thing.

You need to learn to abstract from external factors and immerse yourself in the task you are doing. Silence helps many, but in the modern world it is extremely difficult to find a quiet place where no one will bother you. It is better to learn to work in the conditions that are given, to adapt to the environment.

Modern technologies

The advent of digital technologies and their constant presence in a person’s life leads to a more pronounced “dispersal” of thoughts, a disruption in the ability to concentrate on important things. Deep concentration without technology (and other) interruptions seems so impossible that no one would be surprised to send texts or emails in the middle of a work meeting or corporate presentation.

The ever-present need for multitasking requires divided attention. This leads to the fact that a person cannot focus on something properly; the ability to concentrate is alien to him.

Some people try medication to improve the condition, but most do not have pathological hyperactivity disorder or attention deficit disorder (ADHD). If you also find it impossible to concentrate without interruptions and distractions, but do not want weak concentration to interfere with your work, brain training methods aimed at improving your ability to concentrate will help you.

Turn off notifications on your mobile device

A mobile phone accompanies a person everywhere. Often, a smartphone is the first thing people check in the morning after waking up. But we are also talking about the biggest attention trap and concentration killer. Of course, giving up your mobile phone is impossible, but you can turn it off sometimes.

One study of a group of people found that when notifications were turned off on their mobile device, they were less anxious and more productive. The reason is that when monitoring notifications, a person tries to respond to most of them immediately, and some SMS can cause unnecessary stress.