How to Improve Your Concentration

Concentration is a key component of personal productivity. Those who can't concentrate simply aren't as productive as those who can. And, as a result, they aren't as attractive to employers as those you can concentrate well.

Sometimes, though, it's incredibly difficult to concentrate with all of the things that we, as adults, have going on in our lives. Our spouses or significant others, children, outside interests, TiVo, email, RSS feeds, stress, spring fever and background chatter - it's all very distracting. No wonder it's so hard to concentrate.

You can drastically improve your concentration, therefore, by decreasing distractions. Here are a few ideas to help you improve your concentration:

Exercise. Aerobic exercise has a wonderful tendency to help manage stress. So, too, does anaerobic. Whether jogging or bench pressing, exercise helps improve concentration. It tends to relieve stress and make you more centered. It makes you more focused. Oh, yeah - it also burns calories.

Be in the moment. It's been said that since the past is gone and the future hasn't happened yet, the only thing truly given to us is the here and now - that's why it's called "present." Stressing about that argument you had yesterday with your brother won't help you concentrate, nor will fretting over whether your house is clean enough to satisfy your mother-in-law when she arrives later today. Focusing on what's happening at the moment, however, will help your concentration.

Prioritize. Address your distractions and rank them according to importance. Work-related emails, for instance, are more important than jokes your friends send you. Likewise, an episode of Law & Order will likely fall lower in the pecking order than helping your daughter with her math homework. Once you've ranked the distractions, you'll handle the emergencies and let the non-essential items sit on ice while you concentrate on the matter at hand.

Face away from a window. Windows are wonderful. They let us be inside, while allowing us to look outside. That's also part of the problem with them. Looking outside (even at nothing) is wildly appealing, even though it's the mortal enemy of concentration. It causes daydreaming - which is another concentration villain. Improve your concentration by turning away from the window or, at the very least, closing the blinds or curtains.

There are many more ways to improve concentration. What ways work for you? Contact me on the link above and I may include your ideas into a follow-up article.

IN A NUTSHELL: Improve your concentration by incorporating exercise into your life, focusing on the present, prioritizing and facing away from windows.