Do you want to know how focused you are? That's a great question to be asking yourself. Focus can be impacted by both internal (thoughts/mindset) and external (environment, notifications etc) factors. Sometimes it's internal factors or external factors, and in other instances it's both that are impacting your ability to focus.
This post will share with you the reason you may lack focus (some of it may not be in your control) and tools to help you focus, even if you don't feel like it.
Reasons You're Not Focused Include:
- Not interested in what you are doing
- Physical (including injury) or Mental Illness (including depression), or a combination of both
- Our surroundings/environment
- Overthinking when you try to complete a task
- Distractions - notifications, pinging, unexpected noise
- Worried about results from some kind of test or exam
- Grief
- Temperature - too hot or too cold
- Lack of sleep
- Improper nutrition/ lack of nutrients
- Endocrine issues (Yes menopause I'm talking about you)
How To Focus When You Really Don't Want To
Focus , put simply, is single-minded determination to complete a task or action. It's putting on the blinkers and focusing solely on one thing and getting it done.
The first step to doing something you don't really want to do is to determine if it's actually something that's better off outsourced. If it is, then outsource it. However, if it's something you actually have to do like study for an exam, then you need to break down the task and incentivise taking action. Turn your task or action into a game and compete with yourself to win the task. You'll find this fun element actually turns the task you're avoiding into a fun and enjoyable process, and not only will your focus switch on, you'll enjoy taking action.
Tools to Help You Focus
There are many tools that claim to help you increase your concentration and focus. Here are some of the favorites from the Content Sparks team:
Stay Focusd
StayFocusd increases your productivity by limiting the amount of time that you can spend on time-wasting websites. You sit down at the computer, and you swear you'll be productive. Next thing you know, it's twelve hours later. You've checked your email, updated your Facebook status, blown through 200 pages of Reddit, read every article in your Twitter feed, looked up your favorite band on Wikipedia, vanity googled yourself, cyber-stalked your ex, browsed through all your high-school crushes' Instagram feeds, and lost a week's pay playing online poker.
What you haven't done is WORK.
Forest: Stay focused
Can't stop checking your phone?
It's time to take back control and unleash your productivity with Forest, the revolutionary timer app that eliminates distractions and rebuilds your attention span in the easiest way!
Brain.FM
Install the app, plug in your ear buds and deliver your very best work thanks to the intense focus that Brain.FM gives you. You can improve your concentration in as little as 2 minutes. And if you find you can't switch off? You can listen to a sleep piece of music and be asleep in minutes.
HazeOver
Don’t let yourself drown in scores of open windows. Hiding, switching, looking for the right one, more hiding, more switching. Calm down, breathe in, breathe out, launch HazeOver and finally concentrate on what you’ve been up to.
HazeOver automatically highlights an active window or app when you switch windows. The less important things gently fade away in the background, helping increase your productivity.
Videos That Help You Empty Your Mind
Sometimes you know you that you'll be able to focus if you can empty your mind. Here are two videos that will help you clear your mind and enable you to focus.
Videos That Help You Focus
If you don't need to clear your mind, you just need to focus then these two Tedx talks will inspire you to concentrate better:
Teaching Others How To Focus
You're now well on your way to having better focus and concentration. But there's more! These videos, apps and techniques get you started with your focus. The next step is to put together your own focus program. Why teach others how to focus? When you teach, you embed the concepts deeper into your own mind. This means you will naturally become better at focusing yourself. And in turn, you can help other to focus better. It all starts with our Laser Focus program:
Laser Focus
Teach Yourself. Then teach your audience.
