We are very connected but not very focused. Is it what it touches? Don’t give up, because attention span is also trained
Focusing quickly and improving attention at work today seems like an impossible mission. If it is already difficult to do it under normal conditions (we spend, on average, more than five hours connected to some device), now, with more stimuli, the incessant bombardment of news or the persistent ‘sound’, also more than usual, of the WhatsApp demanding a look, putting the focus on an activity is a task of titans. The continuous assault of thoughts about the situation or the change in the pattern of activities only fuel the dispersion. And we don’t even talk about the children anymore. We have too many time stealers and endless distractions to be efficient. But concentration can also be worked on and improved, the psychologist Jesús Paños, gives us various strategies to reduce that state that the English so aptly call brain fog (mental fog). You choose.
#one. Accept the situation. You have to have a positive attitude and consider what is happening as something transitory that is going to happen. It’s good to have an internal dialogue to help us deal with it.
#two. Self-motivate. To have an inner language of encouragement, to say “I wear myself and I am capable of doing this task here, even if I am not in my usual place of work.” And even think that you can get something out of this.
#3. Plan and rest. Not setting a routine, not having a clear starting time and not knowing how to take breaks are three major obstacles. Every 40 or 50 minutes of work you would need a break, because the attention curve drops at approximately 40 minutes. If you are one of those who can maintain a little more focus, also rest. In this case, you can set your own activity period.
# 4.In the rest periods get a little exercise. It helps concentration, especially if they are motor coordination. For example, coordinate hand and leg movements, lift them a little, do the limp, move around the house or do squats.
#5. Be well hydrated. It is very important to drink water. There are studies that link good hydration with attention span.
# 6. Do breathing exercises. Performing, from time to time, a slow abdominal breathing will allow us to relax.
