How to Stay Focused: Try These 9 Tips to Increase Attention Span

Staying focused has become very challenging in this digital age, where distractions are everywhere. Knowledge is ubiquitous, and we feel the necessity to cope with an expanding number of different pieces of information. It consumes our focus and energy. Therefore, how to stay focused has now become one of the most searched questions.

One of the struggles of our generation is the struggle to stay focused on the work at hand—everyone likes to learn how to improve their focus on things. However, the advantages of improved focus and attention render it worth knowing how to stay focused.

Individuals’ attention is affected by various elements, including their environment, heredity, health, and other factors. But there are certain things we can do to boost our attention. This article will examine numerous strategies for improving your attention and becoming more productive.

Types of Attention

Before learning how to stay focused let’s understand the different types of attention, such as,

Involuntary Attention

This form of focus is generated without the need for willpower. We focus on an item or circumstance with no deliberate effort, such as a mother’s care for her baby, attraction to persons of the other gender, attraction to bright colors, and more.

The focus drawn by impulses is referred to as “forcing non-volitional attention.” When we comment on a young person’s sex drive or interest, he gets fairly focused on his work.

Voluntary Attention

This type of attention is also called Volitional Attention. As the ‘exercised will’ is summoned, it transforms into voluntary attention. It is less natural and impulsive than non-voluntary attention since it requires intentional effort from an individual. Voluntary focus includes focus paid when doing a math puzzle, responding to questions in an exam room, and more.

This type of attention is further divided into two categories; implicit attention and explicit attention. 

In the case of implicit attention, a particular act of intention is enough to awaken attention. In explicit attention, repeated actions of will are necessary to sustain attention.

9 Tips to Stay Focused

While reading this article you may have different doubts such as how to improve focus, how to increase attention span, how to improve concentration, how to stay focused while studying and how to improve attention span. The following tips will give you solutions to all these questions.

1. Avoid Multitasking

To learn how to stay focused the first thing you should do is avoid multitasking. Trying to complete numerous tasks may make you feel efficient. But It’s also a formula for decreased attention, commitment, and efficiency. The decline in productivity might also contribute to stress. Tuning to a podcast while replying to a mail, or conversing on the phone when drafting a document are multitasking. Excessive juggling impairs your capacity to concentrate and reduces the quality of your job.

2. Sleep Well

A variety of variables influence our sleep. The most prevalent is browsing on a digital device such as a laptop, smartphone, or tablet or viewing your favorite film on TV before sleeping. According to studies, such gadgets produce harmful light. This type of light will excite your eye and suppress the release of melatonin, which increases sleep expectancy in the brain.

Also Read: How to Fall Asleep Fast: Best Tips from Sleep Experts

3. Regulate Social Media Use

If visiting Instagram or Twitter every five minutes is your notion of a work break, you should think about controlling your social media use.

Many apps are now available for your smartphone, iPad, or PC. Aside from social media, several of these tools allow you to block games online and platforms such as YouTube, Amazon, Whatsapp, and Twitter. If you are looking for how to stay focused this is the first thing you should do.

4. Practice Mindfulness

Scattered attention is widespread, and we all encounter it. But, these little mental getaways frequently make it difficult to concentrate on the work at hand. It is when mindfulness comes into play. Attempt and let go of the past, though it is difficult. Recognize the effect you experienced and what you learned, and forget it. Likewise, notice your potential anxieties, analyze what you are feeling that worry in your mind, and choose to let it go.

Must Read: Benefits of Meditation

5. Exercise

Jogging, cycling, and lifting weights are not only beneficial to the body. Several studies also enhance mental health, which is vital for memory ability and focus. Daily exercise, particularly, is thought to stimulate the release of certain chemicals in the brain that some studies believe help remodel cognitive networks to enhance their performance.

6. Stay Nourished

Get your brain engaged, spirits up, and your feelings in check by not delaying or skipping food. To keep energized, try to balance your diet with proteins, carbs, and essential fats. If you feel hungry after meals, eat fresh vegetables, fruits, seeds, or nuts, and drink lots of fluids to stay hydrated.

7. Drink Coffee

Several studies have proved that consuming coffee or other caffeinated drinks in low amounts may improve your concentration capacity. The trick to reaping the benefits of caffeine’s focus-improving effects is to use it within limits. If you consume it too often, you might experience anxiety or nervousness, which will impair your capacity to concentrate.

8. Dedicated Workspace

If practicable, provide a tranquil, devoted work environment. A good workspace is not for everyone, but desk organizers, noise-canceling earphones, flexible display, and changeable lighting assist.

9. Listen to Music

What eventually succeeds for you would be the appropriate background music. Studies have revealed that listening to music without lyrics improves productivity compared to silence or white noise. It is to be noted that the music you hear and the job you do now matter. So be mindful of your efficiency and select music that suits you.

The Bottom Line

We hope this article gives you a clear idea of how to stay focused. Proper care of your emotional and physical health is the most effective way to improve attention. It includes sleeping properly, moving around, and shielding your eyes from display stress. Maintaining attention doesn’t require working long hours without taking necessary breaks.