Guide #1: Reducing Distractions and Staying Focused
Focusing is an action that is difficult to execute due to the number of distractions in your life. You try your hardest to work on your paper, assignment, project … but, you just get distracted. Your attention diverges. It does not matter whether you use your phone for a few seconds to search up a word on Google. Next thing you know, you autopiloted onto your favourite sites when you should be focused on the work in front of you.
These are some focus tips that work for me. Hopefully, you will be able to apply some of them to enhance your focus skills and reduce those distractions in your life.
1. Before you start your task, gather all the materials that you need for it. Paper, stationeries, syllabus … put those items within an arm’s reach so you do not have to get up whilst you are studying/working on a task.
2. Making a to-do list of tasks.
It’s important to know what you want to spend your time working on. The best way to keep track of your progress is to make a to-do list.
What do you wish to accomplish? How would you go about doing so? Can you break it up into small tasks?
Do not try to tackle the entire assignment/problem in one shot. You can finish any task by tackling the small tasks that make up that big project. As long as you are making progress, you will be able to complete the task.
3. If you need to use the Internet, then use it. But, as soon as you finish researching, looking up code on StackOverflow for example, turn off the Wifi if you do not need it. The Internet is a wonderful place full of knowledgeable content, but it can get distracting.
During your focus time, you can use website/app blockers like Self Control, LeechBlock … to prevent you from autopiloting onto those social media sites and other frequently used sites.
4. Regarding Phones and Tablets: If you find yourself using Reddit, Facebook, Instagram … when you are supposed to be working on something else, you might want to uninstall those apps from your phone. You can always access the sites on your laptop or even from the web browser.
When you delete the apps, you are removing the convenience and rewiring your brain to stop just launching the app when you are simply bored.
5. Notifications. Most of the applications nowadays automatically have the notification enabled by default. At times, it might be useful. For example, to know if you have a missed call from someone… But, most of the time, it’s a distraction. Do you really need to know in real time that someone liked your photo or followed you? Probably not.
You can reduce your distractions by disabling notifications for those social media apps, game apps and most of your other apps. I tend to have my phone on Airplane Mode whilst I study. This way, I am sure that I get absolutely no distractions during my focus time. It might be a bit extreme, but it works.
6. Use a Pomodoro Timer. You most likely have heard of this timer before. There are numerous apps available for free which implements the Pomodoro Timer. I suggest that you give it a shot if you haven’t heard of it. You can adjust the amount of study-time/focus-time and break time to your liking with some Pomodoros.
The important idea is that during that allocated time block, you focus on one sole task and give it your absolute all. Do not try to multitask.
I do not consider listening to music and doing your homework multitasking since listening to music is a passive activity. But, surfing Reddit whilst doing your homework is considered multitasking because scrolling is not a passive activity.
7. Sleep. It is important to get enough sleep each night. Your body cannot thrive on only 5 hours of sleep. It might work for a day or two, but it will damage your focus. Try to aim for 7-8 hours of good sleep.
I have had my fair share of experience where I believed that getting 4 hours a sleep a night is enough. I wanted to be more productive during the day, but I burnt out after a while due to lack of sleep.
You can use this Bedtime Calculator to calculate those REM cycles: http://sleepyti.me
** This is especially important during Final week/Midterm week. You can cram study and pull an all-nighter, but it is extremely risky taking an examination in that condition. A good night sleep is a must before those examinations if you want to perform at your optimal level.
Focusing is difficult. After a few hours, it becomes almost impossible to concentrate on a task. Taking breaks (included in the Pomodoro Timers) is a good way to let your mind rest for a bit. Stop for a bit on the task. Put all the stuff away and just breathe.
My favourite way of spending breaks is reading material unrelated to school, playing video games or simply let my mind wander.
9. Locations. You might have a study space. Whether its the library, at home … If you start getting distracting from your frequented study space, perhaps changing locations can help. It will help break out of your normal routine.
10. Stopping Point. It is important to know what your limits are. If you are dozing off, unable to concentrate on the material and are rereading the page a couple of times because your brain is not comprehending the text, it might be time to take a small nap. Or, simply stop for the day.
You can always pick up where you left off the next day. Just note down what you have left to go somewhere and relax a bit. You deserve it after spending your energy focusing on the task at hand.
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