What is concentration?
Concentration means "to bring ones thoughts, power, attention on a particular subject, at home or work. To put all of your thought and energy on one thing".
Look at the graph and you will see that it is based on a forty-minute time span; on average this is our best concentration time. As you can see we start to go downhill almost instantly and we hit the bottom so to speak after about twenty minutes. It makes you start to think about how much time do we use effectively during the working day?
The graph is split in two-minute segments, so you can see that we are in our down period for about ten minutes in every forty. It does not mean that nothing happens only that we slow down and start to think about other things rather than what we should be doing. It's like going out of tune with what's going on around you.
What does it mean, well in some ways its good it gives you a mental break from the problems around you, on the other hand it is not good for business.
For example during a working day if you go off line so to speak then you reduce your working efficiency. Take that ten minutes and calculate a working day of approximately eight hours. You are operating at below 50% capacity and at your lowest about 25%. Allowing for lunch and coffee breaks if you are lucky two, deduct forty-five minute, I know some of you don't get forty five, this is an example remember. You are left with seven hours and forty-five minutes, calculate the down time and you will see that you have one hour and fifty-six minutes during which you are not at your best.
Take this a step further and in one week, nine hours forty minutes. It makes you think. What can you do, well first you must acknowledge the fact that you are in the down period and don't say to yourself that everything is OK. Ask your self why you feel like you do and try to think of what it is that makes you feel that way.
- What time did it happen
- If possible write down what you were thinking
- Try to think of what it was that made you lose your concentration
- Look for a pattern, do you lose concentration the same time everyday or when you do a certain task at work
Why cant I cocentrate?
Once you have established when you have your down times then you can start to prevent them, but only by working on them. It's like driving a car to work everyday, you know when the traffic is at its worst so you learn to avoid them. The same applies to your down periods.
In order to concentrate you have to focus and in order to focus you must concentrate. What comes first the chicken or the egg? You must also have self-discipline, a subject I love to talk about in my seminars, without it you cannot train yourself to concentrate, you will give up to easily.
Before we learn how to concentrate we should first think about what it is that makes us
loose concentration.
Tiredness
You have been traveling to a business meeting making you tired before you arrive.
You have been very busy lately with your work.
Boredom
Your boss sends you for a seminar, maybe to listen to me and you do not really want to go you had other plans that weekend. At the beginning you pay attention but eventually you loose concentration because you are not interested in being there.
Daily routine
Things that we have to do, such as tomorrow's meeting, the milk you must buy before
you go home any number of things can distract us.
Distraction
Something else going on around us can also distract us from concentrating. When you go to the movies and the person you are sitting next to is talking, moving and eating goodies during the movie? It starts to annoy you and you get distracted.
It is not always possible to control your environment, which plays an essential role in affecting your ability to focus and concentrate. Depending on what kind of profession you have you may be able to do something about your working conditions. Working in an office you may be able to control the surroundings but if you are working with machinery it could be more difficult. At a seminar you are under the control of the organizer and whatever conditions that he has planned. There are so many variables that it is impossible to mention them all, what I will do is give you some guidelines that you can try and follow.
Distractions can be categorized accordingly, inside and outside.
Inside distractions are the ones no one else can see so they are easy to hide from others. Personal problems that should have been left at home are taken to the office, although you do not intend to think about them you do. Thinking about what you must do tomorrow rather then what you should be doing now is one of the most common reasons for losing concentration.
Outside distractions, well friends can be a big problem especially if you work with them or if they are close by. How often have you found yourself talking to your friend instead of listening to what the speaker has to say. Noise is probably the worst dilemma, you cannot turn it off unless it is a radio and it is close by. Have everything you need for the job at hand, its terrible to start something and then realize that you do not have what you need. Lost or misplaced items are always a distraction. Back up
