How to Stay Focused:- Whether it’s finishing an assignment an hour early at work or cramming for an exam, maintaining concentration is key to success. There are several easy things you can do to help yourself concentrate and avoid the temptation to check your phone or Facebook every fifteen minutes. Avoid becoming sidetracked by other things going on around you and keep focused on the task at hand by writing it down (with built-in breaks) on a to-do list.
- Clean up your desk. Whether you’re at the office or at home, keeping your workspace or study area tidy will help you concentrate and get more done. Get rid of any extraneous or distracting items so you can focus on the job at hand. Remove everything from your desk that isn’t essential, leaving only a few images or keepsakes to help you unwind as you work.
Maintaining your newfound order can be accomplished with as little as ten minutes of cleaning per day. Put your phone aside for a few hours if you don’t need it for work. Don’t allow it get in the way and cause distractions. - Create a list of tasks. Creating a list of things you need to get done at the start of each day or week is a great way to get organized and get things done. If you write down everything you need to do, no matter how trivial, you can cross it off as you finish it and go on to the next thing. This is an excellent method for avoiding multitasking.
Put things in order of importance. Prioritize the things that need to be done the most. When you’re fatigued and less motivated to do the toughest activities, it’s wiser to save the easier ones until later in the day. Putting off the difficult things till the last minute will make you hate doing them all day.
On a list of things to do, you can write, “Call mum. Get the birthday child a cake. Get the doctor in the queue. Sending mail at 2 o’clock. - Set a timer and adhere to it. To-do lists are an integral part of effective time management. Time requirements should be noted next to each task on the list. This estimate needs to be taken seriously. The next step is to do everything you can to do the tasks before the time runs out. You’ll be less tempted to waste an hour texting your pal instead of working because of this.
More time-consuming jobs can be broken up with shorter, simpler ones. That way, you won’t have to deal with a bunch of challenging assignments at once. The shorter assignments might be viewed as a prize in and of themselves.
Making coffee will take 5 minutes, so put that down. 15 minutes to respond to emails. A one-hour meeting of the staff. 30 minutes of meeting notes typing time. Fix up the report in two.” - Ensure that you schedule in regular breaks throughout the day. The act of scheduling time for relaxation into your daily routine may appear to be counterintuitive, yet this method of time management will in fact assist you in maintaining your concentration. A minimum break of five to ten minutes should be taken after every hour of work, and a break of three to five minutes should be taken after every half hour of work. This will not only provide you with a break to give your eyes a rest, but it will also provide you with some time to transition your thoughts to the next activity that lies ahead. You can even programme a timer to alert you to take a break after every half hour or hour of work by setting it to go off at the appropriate interval. You are allowed to forego one of the breaks if you are “in the zone,” but you shouldn’t make this a regular occurrence.
If you have a smartphone, you can also use an app like Pomodoro to arrange your workday with built-in breaks. This will allow you to get more done in the time you have available. - When you need a break, find somewhere quiet where you won’t be disturbed. If, for instance, you continue to check your work email throughout the break, you shouldn’t expect it to assist you rest your mind. Get up and move about during some of the breaks you have. You can get your heart rate up by doing anything as simple as looking out the window, going for a brief stroll outside, or climbing five flights of stairs. You’ll feel more energised and ready to get back to work after taking these quick breaks.
You might, for instance, decide that your reading objective for the next three hours will be to read for a total of thirty minutes. You will feel more driven to complete your chores if you take a little pause every so often to give your eyes a breather from the computer screen and read a chapter of a book.
