You will probably recognize this feeling:
Your to-do list is 10 miles long, and you can’t seem to direct your attention to one specific item on the list.
Every time you sit down to finally focus, or every time you try to start and complete a task, you get distracted by something else.
No matter how badly you want it, you keep losing focus.
Sound familiar?
It used to be a major problem for me, too.
Until I finally figured out how to actually focus.
About eight years ago, I was looking for “motivational quotes” on Instagram when I came across this quote: “Focus: Follow One Course Until Success”.
It seems so straightforward, but how do you do it?
What is needed to be successful?
Let’s dive right into learning to become productive using the principle of FOCUS.
What is focus?
Focus is the ability to concentrate on one thing (e.g. object, a specific task, or a goal) for a period of time.
The ability, meaning to be able. If you can focus, you are able to direct your attention to one thing for a while.
This means that it’s a skill that we can learn. You can train this ability.
To concentrate, meaning while minimizing distraction. We can never entirely eliminate distraction, so in our journey of learning to focus, we should never set that as a goal.
Minimizing distraction is entirely within our control.
On one thing. I assume we can all count, so this should be relatively easy to understand.
Why am I telling you these basics?
Well, oftentimes people (maybe you too) think that they ‘simply just can’t focus’.
Focus is often seen as a skill you either possess or you don’t. As if you’re born with it, or not.
But that is so far from the truth. No matter how distracted you can get sometimes, everyone can learn how to be more focused.
It can take more effort or time for some people to learn, but it is a skill that everyone is capable of learning.
How do you follow one course until success?
It has probably been over 8 years since I first started teaching myself how to focus intensively.
Over the course of time, I have gone from being able to focus on my task for 5 minutes without being distracted, to being able to work for over 3 hours straight in a distracting environment, without being distracted.
Of course, I didn’t learn all of it by myself; sometimes I was forced to focus, such as in school, during hard subjects, or while at home, studying for important presentations.
Either way, there are a few things that I’ve learned that really helped me be able to spend a lot of time focusing.
How do you ‘follow one course until success’? When do you know that you’ve achieved success? Or how do you know you are still on track?
While it can be complicated to answer all these questions, there are some additional questions we can ask ourselves to find out the answer.
How do you know you’ve achieved success?
To be able to measure success, you need to set a goal. This can be any type of goal.
For example:
- A process goal: I want to work on ______ project for ______ hours
- A learning goal: I want to learn _________ skill/language/subject
- A performance goal: I want to increase my sales revenue by _____% in the next _____ (time frame)
- A financial goal: I want to save _______$ for _________ (purpose)
- A health goal: I want to run _______miles in ______(time)
You’ll know you’ve achieved success when you’ve reached your goal.
How do you know you are still on track?
Once you’ve set your goal, you can map out a route that brings you towards the completion of said goal.
You can do this by either chopping up your goal into smaller sections or maybe setting smaller goals/benchmarks that contribute and work towards your bigger goal.
Let’s take a learning goal as an example:
I want to learn _________ skill/language/subject.
To learn that I need to do the following things:
- Find resources
- List all subsections that need to be learned.
- Study for roughly _______ hours per day/week
- Reach out to ______ to teach me or help me.
- Learn _____(amount) of words/formulas/terms
When you’ve figured out what will help you reach your goal, you will be able to easily find out if you are still on track by asking yourself the question ‘Does this contribute towards my goal?’
If it doesn’t, it’s simple: postpone it to a different time, or don’t do it altogether.
If it does, keep going!
Sometimes it’s a little less black-and-white, like if you need to finish a different urgent task first before you can work on your goal again.
This still contributes! If you get that urgent task out of the way, it doesn’t occupy your mind anymore, and it will be easier to focus on your goal again.
5 Useful Tips To Make Focusing a Lot Easier
Focusing is not always easy and can be extremely hard.
One important thing to remember is that learning how to focus is a process, not a single event.
It takes time to learn and develop this skill, just like it takes time to learn and develop any other skill.
And that’s where these 5 useful tips come in that can make it a lot easier.
Timer
Using a timer can be very beneficial when it comes to learning how to focus.
- It allows you to focus on one task for an extended period of time (also known as time-blocking).
- It sets you up for success in the sense that you know what to do every time you start that timer.
- It reminds you to take breaks and stretch or do a small workout to keep your body happy, as well as your mind.
You can start setting a timer for a short period of time, maybe even as little as 5 minutes, when you are just starting out.
Try focusing for the duration of your timer.
Especially in the beginning, but even over time, you will run into distractions.
A simple way to tackle these and keep your focus going is by putting a notepad next to you, and writing down any thoughts you have that are distracting you.
This can include other tasks that you come up with, ideas for other projects, or anything else, really.
Over time, you will find out what works best for you, how long you are able to focus at once, and how you can optimize the use of your time and energy.
A famous technique for using a timer is the Pomodoro Technique, in which you set a timer for 25 minutes, followed by a 5-minute break.
In the Pomodoro Technique, this pattern is repeated four times before taking a longer, 15-30 minute break.
By using this technique, you will be reminded to stay focused and take breaks.
What I also like about the Pomodoro Technique is that you can cut your big assignment or challenge into smaller chunks that are easier to tackle.
Eliminate Distraction
Especially in the beginning, it will be very helpful to eliminate distractions around you, so that it is easier to focus.
Think about what your working space looks like. Maybe it’s the desk in your room, or the dining table in your house.
What do you have lying around that shouldn’t be there? Where do your eyes keep wandering to while you’re trying to work?
Try to move these items to a different spot, or find a less distracting place altogether.
I personally like to only have the task, a timer, a glass of water, a notepad, and a single pen on my desk, no matter how big the desk.
You don’t have to sit at a desk per se, if you always work on your bed, the floor, the kitchen table, it’s fine.
Do whatever works best for you.
Have a drink handy
Another thing to think about is having a drink on your desk when you are working, so you don’t have to get up when you’re thirsty during your focus period.
If you really want coffee or tea, make some before you focus.
You can also just get a glass of water, so that you have something to drink when you get thirsty.
My advice is to stay away from sugary drinks right before focusing and while focusing.
Consuming sugar causes our glucose levels to rise quickly, which is followed by a drop about 20 minutes later.
This drop in glucose levels can leave you feeling unfocused and easily distracted.
Rewards and punishment
Have you ever noticed that kids in a classroom often get rewarded for behaving like they are supposed to? Or for finishing a bunch of tasks?
Kids are tiny humans, and that’s why rewarding yourself can also work for you and me.
Maybe you just bought a new book and are looking forward to reading it. You can use this as a reward for focusing.
You might tell yourself that if you work for 1 hour, you get to spend 20 minutes reading your new book.
Instead of giving yourself a reward, you can also try giving yourself a small punishment for bad behavior or not finishing the task.
I am not talking about an extreme punishment where you will get bruises all over your body, or your phone taken away for a week.
It can be something as simple as not allowing yourself to read that book you just bought, until you’ve finished the task, or not going to a party you were invited to. These are still pretty big things; you can make a punishment as small or big as you want.
Rewards and punishments don’t work for everyone. Maybe you don’t even need to use it, or maybe it has a bad effect on your focus.
Again, this is all about you and what works for you, so experiment with it!
Giving yourself a reward or punishment requires some discipline, which is absolutely worth learning.
Helping the senses
Smell
Do you ever smell something and all of a sudden you remember something that happened years ago, or a distinct place or person?
Our brains are programmed to connect smell to memories and actions.
Because of this, it might help you to light a certain candle or a scent in an aromatic diffuser while trying to focus.
What you are trying to do is connect the action of focusing to the smell of that specific scent.
To help optimize its effects, only use this scent when focusing, and use different smells at other times.
Background sound
Over the last few years, many focus and white-noise apps have made their way onto the market and become popular.
A lot of the focus apps, with a built-in timer, also have the option to play a sound.
This can be the sound of rain, birds tweeting, whale songs, white noise, classical music, or anything else.
You can try out a different genre a few times and see what helps you focus the most.
Maybe a different genre works well for a different type of task.
Or maybe you prefer just working in silence.
Again, the easiest way to find out what works for you is to experiment.
Stay Active
Our bodies aren’t made for sitting behind a desk or table as much as we do in this day and age.
Our brains need movement to function and focus better.
When we move, it increases blood flow and oxygen to the brain, especially to the prefrontal cortex, which is responsible for focus and concentration.
Another benefit of staying active is the increase in the production of neurotransmitters such as dopamine and serotonin.
These hormones play a big role in mood regulation, motivation, and cognitive performance (attention, information processing, memory, reasoning).
You can stay active between tasks by doing a short workout routine during your break time.
You can develop a short workout circuit to do in your 5-minute break, or steal mine:
- 25min focus
- 5 min break:
- 10 squats,
- 10 reverse lunges each leg,
- 10 arm circles forward and 10 backward,
- 10 sumo squats.
- 25 min focus
- 5 min break:
- Repeat
And so I continue for about 2-3, or sometimes 4 hours at once before taking a longer break, going for a short walk outside before getting back to work.
Staying active isn’t just beneficial as a break between your focus times; it should be a part of your lifestyle.
Doing a short workout routine, even if it’s just 10 minutes a day, has great benefits for your overall health, your body, brain, and even your mental health.
If you’re in a good spot health-wise, focusing will become so much easier!
Want to know more about leading an active lifestyle? Click here
Mastering focus is a journey that requires patience, experimentation, and consistency.
Remember, it’s not about achieving perfection overnight but about making steady progress by applying these simple yet effective strategies.
As you practice following one course until success, you’ll find yourself becoming more productive, motivated, and ultimately closer to reaching your goals.
Take the first step today—choose one tip from this post to implement and watch your ability to focus strengthen over time.
Your future self will thank you for it!
