Increasing
Concentration
Do you know how many
thoughts your mind thinks
each hour of the day?
Experts estimate that
the mind thinks between
60,000 – 80,000 thoughts
a day. That’s an average of
2500 – 3,300 thoughts per
hour. That’s incredible.
There is a mismatch
between how much
information the mind can
consciously process (not a
lot) and how much
information it is exposed to
(a lot).
Most Thoughts …
are useless,
unimportant thoughts
pass through the mind
with a huge speed.
are words you repeat in
your mind,
comments the mind
makes,
questions, answers you
heard said,
are like a constant
mental noise that goes on
and on.
are tiring and
exhausting.
There are several
techniques to reduce the
number of thoughts that
your mind thinks per day.
The best method is
concentration
What is
Concentration?
Concentration is the
ability to direct the
attention in accordance
with one's will. It means
control of the attention.
It is the ability to focus
the mind not only on
pleasurable and enjoyable
things and activities that
you love, but also on your
tasks, on your work or
studies, and on boring and
uninteresting things that
you need or have to do.
What is
Concentration?
It is the ability to
focus the mind on one
subject, object or
thought, and at the same
time exclude every other
unrelated thoughts, ideas,
feelings and sensations.
Benefits of
concentration
helps in finishing a task,
job or achieving a goal
more easily and efficiently.
It assists in studying,
enables faster
comprehension,
improves the memory,
The Four
Components of
Concentration
The four interrelated
components that define
concentration include:
Width,
Direction,
Intensity,
Duration.
A practical technique
you can use to control your
attention is to think of
concentration as an
adjustable flashlight
shining from your
forehead, and which you
can easily adjust.
Width
The width of attention
can take:
a broad perspective,
where you process a large
amount of information
coming from various
sources
a narrow perspective,
where only a limited
amount of information is
allowed to capture your
attention.
Direction
The second component
has to do with the
direction of your focus.
Internal concentration:
focus of attention is turned
inward toward your mind
to target specific thoughts,
images and feelings... you
selectively filter external
events.
An external focus … the
insistence is on the
changing events that are
occurring around you in
real time.
It has been found
that an external focus
of attention leads to
improved learning
and performance (see
Wulf et al., 1999).
Intensity &
duration
Concentration can also
vary in terms of its
intensity - from being
weak to being strong or
intense.
Stronger emphasis is put on
important things than futile
stuff.
Finally, concentration
can vary in terms of its
duration. Here,
concentration varies from
brief to sustained
periods of time.
Note that the more
intense your
concentration is, the
shorter will be the length
of time you can maintain
focus at that intensity
before mental fatigue sets
in.
Under relaxed
conditions we possess
greater mental flexibility
and can give items their
due degree and length of
concentration.
Learning Mental Self-
Regulation for Improved
Concentration
Improving concentration
is a skill that needs time
and practice to develop.
Concentration
strategies may be
developed via one of these
techniques:
Be Here Now
The Spider Technique
Worry Time.
Be Here Now
When you notice your
thoughts wandering
astray, say to yourself "Be
here now” and gently
bring your attention back
to where you want it.
For example:
You're in class and your
attention strays from the
lecture to all the
homework you have, ... As
you say to yourself "Be
here now” you focus
back on the lecture and
maintain your attention
there as long as possible.
The Spider
Technique
This is another strategy
that helps you to maintain
your concentration and not
give in to distractions.
Hold a vibrating tuning fork
next to a spider web. The
spider will react and come
looking for what is vibrating
the web. Do it several times
and the spider "wises up"
and knows there's no bug
and doesn't come looking.
You can learn that.
Train yourself not to
give in to distractions.
When someone enters the
room, or when a door
slams, do not allow
yourself to participate.
Rather, keep your
concentration on what's in
front of you.
The Spider
Technique
Three ground rules in
order to apply the Spider
Technique:
1) Re-focus
Every time you’re
distracted and you want to
look up or listen to a
conversation, force
yourself to re-focus.
Remind yourself that this
is just a distraction and
refocus on your work.
2) Know your
weaknesses
Be aware of what you’re
naturally distracted by: are
you more distracted by
visual or audio distractions
or both?
3) Avoid your
weaknesses
If you get distracted by
seeing people walking by
or a post-it reminding you
of another task etc., then
try to keep your workplace
as clean as possible and
avoid crowded spaces. It
can also help to point the
view of your workplace
towards a wall or a calm
environment.
Worry or Think
Time
In order to find freedom
from the inner chatter of
your brain and reach a
new level of consciousness
in the present moment,
‘Be Here Now’ helps turn
your worry filled moments
into zen filled moments.
Worry or Think
Time
Set aside a specific time
each day to think about
the things that keep
entering your mind and
interfering with your
concentration.
For example, set 4:30 to
5:00 p.m. as your worry/think
time.
Every time your mind
wanders, remind yourself
that you have a special time
for worrying, and return your
focus to your immediate
activity.
Specific ways to
improve
concentration
Increase Your Activity
Level. Don’t read
assignments passively.
Instead, take the heading
for each section and turn it
into a question.
Rest/Stretch Time.
Remember to take short
breaks.
Specific ways to
improve
concentration
Shift position in your
seat every so often. The
move will help keep the
blood circulating, sending
more oxygen to your brain
and helping you remain
alert.
Change Topics. You
can give yourself variety
by changing the subject
you study regularly.
Give yourself
incentives and
Rewards. Give yourself a
reward when you've
completed a task.
Specific ways to
improve
concentration
Chart your energy
levels. When is your
energy level at its highest?
When are your low energy
times?
Eat right food for
your brain. Eat plenty of
fruits and vegetables. They
are high in vitamins, and
antioxidants your brain
needs.
Drink more water.
Get enough sleep
(8Hrs)
Swap Caffeine For
Cardio.
Specific ways to
improve
concentration
Clear away
distractions.
Stop multitasking.
Find your perfect
sound environment. Not
everyone responds the
same to sound.
Be flexible in your
schedule. You'll probably
need to modify your
schedule from time to
time.
Concentration Practice
Exercises
Exercise 1
Take a book, any book, and
count the words in any one
paragraph. Then, count
them again, to be sure
that you have counted
them correctly.
After a few times, do so
with two paragraphs.
When this becomes easy,
count the words of a whole
page. Do the counting
mentally and only with your
eyes, without pointing your
finger at each word.
Exercise 2
Count backwards in your
mind, from one hundred to
one.
Exercise 3
Count in your mind from
one hundred to one,
skipping each three
numbers, that is 100, 97,
94, etc.
