We live in an age where everybody has struggled with our attention span. We are multitasking more than ever, and this means that we either try to keep on top of everything, or we focus on one thing at a time. When we struggle with our attention, or we feel that we’re not focusing as best as we can, are there any things that we should put in place?
Is There An Underlying Condition?
If you forever feel like you struggle to focus, there could be something that’s been chipping away at you for years. It could very well be something like anxiety or depression. When we suffer from any mental health problem it’s going to have an effect on our ability to concentrate. If you have felt like this for a long time, it’s important to see if there’s anything that can be done medically. You may find that you’ve got problems with your attention, and they went undiagnosed. In this case, there are ADHD drugs that can help, like Adderall. But there are other drugs as well, and this article on Vyvanse vs Adderall could point you in the right direction. It’s important to find out if there are any underlying problems first.
Practicing Your Focus
When our attention span drops, and we’ve eliminated the mental circumstances, this is when we have to start practicing our focus. It’s important that you start to think of your mind as a muscle. Much like before going to the gym, if you start to feel stressed, or think that you can’t do it, it will impact your ability to physically lift things. And why is it important to reduce your stress because this will naturally help you focus, but part it is about strengthening your brain. There are ways to do this, such as by increasing the strength of your focus gradually, as well as building your willpower and also focusing on memorizing exercises. If your short term memory is weak but your long-term memory is okay, think about certain brain training exercises that can help. Dual N-Back is a great game that can improve your spatial awareness as well as your ability to memorize sequences. And as frustrating as these games can be you have to remember that when something is frustrating, that is when you are making the connections in your brain.
Emotional Connections Will Boost Attention Span
One of the oldest tricks in the book to memorizing things is about exaggeration, and making it personal to you, that is what makes it stand out. When you’re struggling to focus on something or someone, it’s not enough to tell yourself that you are going to focus, but you’ve got to start being curious and realizing that as soon as your attention waivers, that you go back onto what they have to say. It’s a long journey to increasing your mental strength in this way, but being curious and finding the emotional needs in what you have to focus on can provide that anchor.
You may very well be the barrier that stops you from improving your focus. But if you feel like this has been a long-term problem, there are things that you can do to fix it, such as the right exercises, but also realizing that you may very well be the obstacle.
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