Focus Pocus

It feels funny writing about focus today when it took me a while to focus on writing this. My phone battery is dying, Instagram is lurking me to see what everyone’s been doing, there’s this e-mail I need to send and I also feel like having a cup of tea. There are all these things in my mind that I need to chase away in order to be productive. It’s a very familiar feeling, as we are all human and need to push ourselves in order to get things done. That is exactly where focus comes in handy, as it helps us do it better and faster.

So, my phone is charging and the tea smells delicious, and I can now get into my thoughts without any distractions. I bet you also feel like distractions are all around all the time, and in this digital area I feel that’s true now more than ever. You are tempted to check your phone while you’re studying, or you open your email for work and find a link to a funny video and end up on youtube for next two hours without even realising that time flew by! It’s scary how easy it is to get lost in our distractions, whatever they may be. But, since scrolling on Insta won’t get you a good grade on the test, and cat videos won’t write that work report – it’s time to focus. It’s this productive state of mind where you are in the moment, only thinking about what you are doing, and you are in it 100%. It is also a tricky little bastard that likes to play hide and seek and can be hard to find sometimes (and super easy to loose). But, like anything else, focusing gets easier with practice and there are some methods and tricks that you can use to improve it. I really like the Pomodoro technique that basically suggests being in a super focus mode for 25 minutes and after that taking a short break. It is amazing how much you can do if you repeat that pattern during your productive time. What else? Stress is kind of a focus killer so try to relax and practice mindfulness. Have a place where you usually study or work, and make sure that that area is free from distractions. Forget about multitasking, you need to be focused on one thing/task. Some even suggest chewing gum because it sends oxygen to some parts of our brains, but I wouldn’t really recommend it. What I feel is crucial is spending the activation energy (it’s that push that you need in order to get moving) and going to your place that I previously mentioned where you usually get your focus mode on. Put the phone on silent and get started. After a few moments your brain will give in and start collaborating. Now let’s get some shit done!