The Internet has such a great reach that that it provides us with a constant feed of noise, information and entertainment. This has unknowingly caused us to have a life full of distraction. Something that could be easily done in 5 minutes is now taking us 10 minutes to do so. It is so hard to just spend a full 30 minutes practising a musical instrument without any other distractions.
As such, here are 5 ways to improve your attention span and have greater focus on your tasks!
1. Meditate
Studies have proven that meditation not only changes brain patterns for the better, it also improves your mental focus. There are many types of meditation you can embark on. The more common types of meditation you would probably have heard of are qigong and zen meditation.
Today, we will be looking at the focused attention meditation. Rather than focusing on nothing which beginners often find it hard to do so, focused attention meditation allows you to focus on anything that involves the sense.
Focused attention meditation:
1. Find your most comfortable sitting position e.g. on a cushioned chair, on the floor cross-legged etc.
2. Choose an object to focus on. It can be anything, e.g. the sound of a metronome, your own breathing, the sound of the waves etc.
3. Close your eyes and focus on your chosen object. Try to take in the sensations your object provides you with. If you lose focus, it's okay. Just revert your attention back to your chosen object.
By practising meditation, it allows you to have increased attention span and focus longer on the task at hand. Even though meditation may seems boring at first, by persevering on, you are likely to reap highly beneficial long-term results from it.
2. Using interleaved practice
Everybody loves a challenge. Rather than engaging in block practice which is the constant repetition of practising a single skill, it is better to engage in interleaved practice. Interleaved practice is when you split a big segment into smaller parts and practising these different segments in intervals rather than doing the big segment at one go over a long time frame.
An example of block practice is:
An example of interleaved practice is:
Breaking down a huge segment will allow you to sense the errors that you are making and recognising it rather than just mindlessly practising it on a repeat mode.
3. Get rid of distractions
There are so many distractions around us, making it hard for us to focus on one task alone. Among these distractions, technology is the main culprit. As such, when you want to start your practice session or focus on any task on hand, turn off your phone or put it somewhere far away you can't see. When you can't see it, you won't know it's there!
You should also clear your mind before you start your practice session. Forget all about the mundane things in your everyday life and just focus on prepping your mind to absorb the sensations of the activity you will be doing later on.
4. Stand up
For those of you who are also looking for a healthy way to lose weight, this is perfect for you. Research has shown that standing up burns 15% more calories than sitting down. Furthermore, standing up helps you to concentrate easier. Hence, you may want to try standing up next time while doing your work! Or, you can stand up while practising your ukulele!
5. Exercise
Working out regularly has a positive effect on your attention span. Working out does not necessarily means hitting the gym. It can be something as simple as walking the 5 minutes route home instead of cabbing. Taking a stroll at the park is also counted! The important thing is that you need to stick to your schedule. It will not help if you have a 2 hours workout this week and nothing next week. Remember to have a constant workout schedule to improve your attention span.
Now that you know these simple hacks in improving your attention span, go ahead and implement this in your life. You can look forward to the results, learn some music while you are at it!