How To Get Better at Concentration
Being present is a newer way of saying that we should be focused. Focus is becoming a lost skill in today’s world, so much so that it stands you apart when you can have it. It’s one of the most practical and powerful tools we are given in our own body.
It’s easy to pretend that we are present, that we are focused on either the task at hand or the person we are speaking to. But if we’re honest, we know that our attention is limited, and it sprints away from us in a moment because we’ve trained ourselves in the wrong direction. I once heard that the average person has an attention span of 5 seconds. The sad thing is that a goldfish has one of 6 seconds. We are now competing with a goldfish for our attention, and they are winning. I also heard that statistic before COVID-19, too, so I can’t imagine we’ve improved much since then. Many of us have let distraction take us down a path of short-term gain, where we look from thing to thing so quickly that anything long-term is exhausting. Maybe even annoying. It might sound harsh, but it’s what many of us are fighting against, whether we realize it or not. But is that the kind of person we want to become? Do we want to be unfocused with our kids, our careers, or our friendships?
The way we do anything, from getting better at basketball to becoming more focused, is more practice. I think we often undervalue the importance of practicing skills like concentration or communication. Like anything else, we need to put in the reps. We need to practice what we want to become better at, and focus is no different than that. But there is hope, because despite the distraction, all the tools that help us focus are still here today. Here’s a few ideas:
· Spend time in nature away from technology.
· Try a new prayer, mindfulness, or meditation routine.
· Read a physical book that requires focus to understand the plot.
This is not an exhaustive list – I’m sure you can come up with more ideas that might even work better for you, but if you don’t have a starting point, remember that nature still exists, prayer is still accessible, and books can still be borrowed from the library. I say this to myself, too, because I’ve noticed how the distraction of technology and the fast pace of today’s world robs my attention. I want to be a more focused person, but I know that only comes through practice. So if you find yourself becoming more forgetful or distracted, choose something that cultivates concentration. You can focus if you fight for it.
