Focus - Its meaning and importance, causes of distraction and their treatment, and exercises to increase focus.

External causes of distraction:

Temperature:
Some might find this point surprising, but the reality is that there are students who will remain frustrated by the temperature of the place where they study, whether it's too high or too low. Unsuitable temperatures will periodically disrupt their concentration. For example, a student studying in a hot environment who can't tolerate high temperatures will either show signs of discomfort, check if the cooling devices are functioning properly, or relocate to a place with a more suitable temperature to refresh themselves before returning to their hot study spot. The same applies to places with low temperatures, and it all takes up a significant portion of a student's thinking and focus.

Therefore, students whose concentration is affected by temperature should either immediately contact someone who can repair the temperature control devices if there is a malfunction, or find another place to study. Trying to adapt to the temperature of the place will not work for them because it will consistently lead to distraction, and their presence in such a location is simply a waste of time.

Study Environment:
Some students are highly distracted by anything inappropriate in their study environment. This could be a table or chair that wobbles or isn't stable, an uncomfortable chair, inadequate lighting, or wall colors that don't match the student's taste. These factors can take a portion of the student's thoughts and focus.

One aspect that can cause distraction in the study environment is having windows without curtains or having transparent or thin curtains in front of the student's face. In such cases, the window can lead the student to completely shift their attention away from studying, as they become preoccupied with everything happening outside.

Another surprising aspect is the presence of clutter in the study area. It can make the student constantly think about organizing the clutter, creating scenarios in their head for tidying it up. These scenarios stay in their mind, while the clutter remains unchanged, ultimately leading to a loss of concentration.

There are many aspects that can cause distraction in the study environment, too numerous to list in a single article. It's up to each individual to identify these distractions. However, once identified, it's essential to address and remedy them promptly, as failing to do so will only increase the loss of focus and waste valuable time.

People:
Humans are social beings, and the relationships between them have become complex. One cannot continue their normal life without these relationships. However, during study time, these relationships should be set aside, and the best approach is to be straightforward about it. Communicate clearly that the designated study time is a period during which all social interactions will be put on hold, and it is essential that everyone respects this arrangement.

Mobile Phones:
Mobile phones are currently one of the leading causes of distraction for many students. You may find a student deeply engrossed in their studies, and suddenly, without any warning, the phone rings or an alert pops up. At that moment, the student abandons their studies to check the phone, and afterward, they unconsciously switch from one app to another, wasting time and losing focus.

Other students might experience a condition known as "nomophobia," which is the fear of being away from their phones. This leads to keeping the phone nearby, and due to this condition, every notification can lead to a loss of concentration.

To address the problem of distraction caused by mobile phones, a student can either place the phone in a different location, away from the study area, as long as they can't hear the notification sounds from that location. If the student has nomophobia, they can either turn off the phone, switch it to airplane mode, or find another method to prevent the phone from causing distractions.

Internal Causes of Distraction:

Hunger and Thirst:
Sometimes, hunger or thirst can occupy a portion of a student's thoughts and focus. This includes thinking about meal times, the type of food or drink they desire, and other related thoughts. All these thoughts revolve around the subject of eating or drinking.

Therefore, if a student is the type who loses focus when feeling hungry or thirsty, it's essential to eat or drink immediately to alleviate hunger and thirst. Delaying it will only keep them distracted.

Anxiety and Stress:
These two factors are among the most challenging causes of distraction because they can sometimes be beyond one's control. For example, a loved one undergoing surgery and being in the hospital can occupy a student's thoughts and take them away from their focus.

There are many things that can cause anxiety and stress, so it's essential to stop them if possible or reduce them as much as one can.

For instance, if someone believes that another person is angry with them, even if it's just a belief and not confirmed, this can significantly impact their thinking and focus. To address this, it's necessary to contact the person, have a conversation, and resolve any potential conflicts. Even if there wasn't a real conflict in the first place, the goal is to put an end to the anxiety and stress.

In cases where the source of anxiety and stress is beyond our control, like the example mentioned earlier with a loved one in the hospital, it's essential to alleviate anxiety and stress by periodically checking on the patient's condition and staying informed.

Fatigue and Drowsiness:
This point doesn't require much explanation because a student who is suffering from fatigue due to illness, exhaustion from intense physical activity, or drowsiness due to lack of sleep or general tiredness will constantly be reminded of these factors when they need to concentrate.

The solution in this case is straightforward:

• If the student is unwell, they should start treatment immediately and not assume that the illness will pass on its own soon.
• If the student feels exhausted, they should take a good amount of rest in a way they find suitable. After getting sufficient rest, they can then resume studying with a clear mind.
• If the student is feeling drowsy, they should go to sleep immediately. Their eyes and body will demand sleep, and resisting it will only lead to wasted time until they inevitably succumb to sleep.

Continuous Reading Without Breaks:
As you've read, continuous reading without breaks can lead to distraction. To address this issue, there's a technique called the "Pomodoro Technique".

This technique involves dividing your study time into four rounds as follows:

1. The first round: Study for 25 minutes, then take a 3 to 5-minute break.
2. The second round: Study for 25 minutes, then take a 3 to 5-minute break.
3. The third round: Study for 25 minutes, then take a 3 to 5-minute break.
4. The fourth round: Study for 25 minutes, then take a 15 to 30-minute break.

Afterward, you can start another set of four rounds in the same order mentioned above.

A crucial note to remember is that during the break periods, you should avoid engaging in any activity that might start during the break but not end with it. This can cause you to think about it after the break, leading to distraction and loss of focus. For example, if you start watching a basketball game at the beginning of your break, and the game is still ongoing when the break ends, you may continue thinking about the game and lose focus.

Another important point is that the person who developed this technique determined the time intervals based on their preferences. However, some studies suggest that the actual focus period for an average person is between 15 to 20 minutes. Therefore, the specific time interval for focus can vary from person to person, whether it's 15, 20, or 25 minutes.

Urgent Thoughts:
Sometimes, despite having all the conditions set for studying, an urgent thought may arise and dominate your thinking, causing you to lose focus. However, the solution to this problem is straightforward: respect your mind.

You can do this by not ignoring the urgent thought. Instead, have a piece of paper and a pen ready, and write down this thought with the intention to revisit it after finishing your study session. By doing this, you'll find that your mind has stopped dwelling on this thought because you acknowledged it and treated it with respect.

In summary, the discussion about distraction, including its external and internal causes along with their treatment methods, is directed towards individuals who have the ability to concentrate but lose that focus due to distracting factors. It is essential for them to address the causes of distraction because these factors can consume a lot of time without yielding any benefits.

Exercises to Improve Concentration:

There are many exercises to enhance concentration, and in this article, we will mention some of them. These exercises are designed for individuals who struggle with a lack of focus even when there are no distractions. You may find your mind wandering, thinking about various things, whether important or not, and losing almost all concentration on the current task that requires your attention.

The goal of these exercises is to gain control over your mind and prevent it from controlling you. This is achieved by blocking your mind during the exercise from thinking about anything other than the exercise itself.

Preparation Before Exercises:

Before starting any exercise, it's advisable to practice the 4-2-8 breathing technique for a minimum of 3 minutes.

1. Inhale deeply for 4 seconds, filling your lungs completely.
2. Hold your breath for 2 seconds.
3. Exhale slowly for 8 seconds, emptying your lungs fully.

Exercise Schedule:

1. The exercises should be done daily.
2. Once or twice a day.
3. Specific times for the exercises should be established and not changed.
4. The duration of each exercise session is 10 minutes.
5. During this 10-minute session, one or two exercises should be performed.

According to studies, the results should start to become noticeable after a month of adhering to the exercise schedule.

Exercise 1:

Find the largest possible number of triangles within one minute.

 

Exercise 2:

Navigating and focusing in optical illusion pictures is a fun activity. There are many of them on the internet where a single image contains multiple shapes or forms. You just need to gaze and concentrate on a specific shape while ignoring the others.

In the next image, you can see columns with a group of people appearing between the columns.

For the first round, focus on the people between the columns and try to ignore the presence of the columns.

For the second round, focus on the columns and try to ignore the presence of the people between the columns.

Exercise 3:

This exercise can be done by an individual or a group of individuals, or there can be a competition between multiple groups. The real fun is when multiple groups compete against each other.

To clarify how to perform the exercise, let's assume we have a group consisting of three people. Now, we choose categories to apply to them, and the number of categories is one more than the number of people. In our case, the required number of categories to choose is four categories, such as carrots, apples, lemons, and tomatoes, for example.

The first person starts the count by saying one carrot, then the second person says two apples, and the third person says three lemons. Then, it goes back to the first person who says four tomatoes, and the second person says five apples, and so on.

And so on until the count reaches a multiple of ten based on the number of participants. In our case, with three participants, they should reach the count of 30. So, in our current example, the count will be thirty apples.

Then the countdown begins in reverse order. In our current example, it becomes 29 lemons, then 28 tomatoes...

And so on until we return to the number 1, which in our current example is one lemon.

To make the exercise competitive, it's preferable to have two groups with an equal number of participants, and then they can compete against each other. The first group to finish the task will be the winner.



However, there's a crucial point to keep in mind. To get the maximum benefit from the exercise, it's best not to write down the categories to remember them. Instead, make an effort to memorize them in order. When you've successfully memorized them, begin the exercise without any external assistance.

Here's a simple summary of the exercise:

• One person: Two categories - Total: 10 items
• Two people: Three categories - Total: 20 items
• Three people: Four categories - Total: 30 items
• Four people: Five categories - Total: 40 items
• Five people: Six categories - Total: 50 items

It's not recommended to have more than five people as the number of categories would become quite large.

Exercise 4:

Countdown quickly.

In the first round, count backward from 20 to 0, subtracting 1 each time.

In the second round, count backward from 30 to 0, subtracting 2 each time.

In the third round, count backward from 40 to 1, subtracting 3 each time.

In the fourth round, count backward from 50 to 2, subtracting 4 each time.

In the fifth round, count backward from 100 to 2, subtracting 7 each time.

Each person can choose their own set of numbers for this exercise.

Exercise 5:

You are the hero of the story.

Sit in your chair, keep your eyes open, and focus on a specific point in front of you. Do not move your eyes away from that point. Then, for just ten minutes, recall a story you've heard before that had an impact on you, whether it's a true story, a fictional one, a story from a TV show or movie, or a historical event like a battle or a speech by a leader. Afterward, try to embody one of the characters from this story, whether it's a main character or a supporting one, and imagine yourself in their place, immersing yourself in the details of that character's life.

For example, imagine yourself attending a historic and pivotal speech by the president of a country. Picture yourself as one of the president's personal guards. You should envision what you and the people around you are wearing, the sounds that fill the air, both the speech and the audience's reactions, the surroundings and the people present, and immerse yourself in the emotions and sensations you or those around you might experience. Focus solely on this event, and don't think about anything that happened before or after the speech, as the goal is to concentrate solely on this one event and nothing else.

Recommended Games:

Sudoku



Math Pieces Game

It's a mobile app game that you can download and play directly on your phone.

In summary, when it comes to concentration-enhancing exercises, you will notice that during any exercise, you have no room to think about anything else except the exercise you are doing in that moment, resulting in accurate and fast outcomes. The more earnestly you perform the exercise, the greater the benefit derived from it.

Hyperfocus:

The third condition we mentioned, where there is a group of people falling under it, is "focus with the presence of distractions." As we mentioned earlier, these individuals are fortunate up to a certain point. However, some of them may experience what is known as hyperfocus. Hyperfocus can make the person affected by it seem isolated from their surroundings, and this can have negative effects on them.

Let's differentiate between a person with high concentration who is not suffering from hyperfocus and a person who is affected by hyperfocus:

The first type: Individuals with high concentration who are not affected by hyperfocus are fully engaged in the task at hand. At the same time, they maintain awareness of their surroundings. However, as long as their environment remains in its usual state, it doesn't distract them or disrupt their focus.

In other words, if there are children in the house, and their presence is nearly constant, or if there's a noisy electrical device, or any other common factors for this person, they won't pay much attention to them and consider them part of their normal environment.

In the event that something particularly attention-grabbing occurs, they may briefly interrupt their current task, focus on the noteworthy event, comprehend it fully, but their overall concentration remains connected to the task at hand.

As mentioned, people often wish they could reach the same level of concentration as individuals of this type.

The second type: The person affected by hyperfocus is sometimes referred to as having Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). When you call them while they are engaged in a task, you won't get an immediate response. It's not because they are deliberately ignoring you, but rather because they are not aware of someone calling them. You might need to call them multiple times or raise your voice to get their attention.

These individuals have a positive trait of being able to complete tasks with great focus. However, their overall situation can be challenging because they may miss important things happening around them. This can sometimes lead to problems, or even harm to themselves or others, such as missing important appointments like work or interviews.

As an example, there is a true story of a woman with hyperfocus. She was working on her research at home, completely engrossed in her work. Unbeknownst to her, a fire started in the kitchen at the back of the house. The fire alarms went off, and firefighters arrived at the scene. To their surprise, they found her calmly working on her research in her room, completely oblivious to the fire. She was fortunate to come out of this situation unharmed, but not everyone may be as lucky.



Individuals with hyperfocus may not find ways to reduce their focus easily, but they can use strategies to cope with it, such as:

1. Choosing a career that requires high levels of concentration, like programming or accounting, as these fields benefit from intense focus.
2. Scheduling non-work-related tasks during vacations, holidays, or after work hours when hyperfocus is less likely to be a problem.
3. Asking colleagues at work or family members at home to help by alerting them when they need to stop what they're doing.

Questions that might be asked about the topic of focus:

1. How can a person improve their focus?

2. Why is focus the key to success?

3. How do I start focusing?

4. How can I train myself to focus better?

5. Is focusing difficult?

6. How long can a person concentrate?

7. What is a focused person like?

8. Is focus a mental skill?

9. Why can't I concentrate?

10. What are some common causes of distraction?

11. Why is focus important in daily life and work?

12. What are the benefits of being able to focus effectively?

13. How can distractions be managed or minimized?

14. What are the effects of a lack of focus on productivity?

15. Are there any techniques or strategies to improve focus?

16. How can one maintain focus over extended periods?

17. What role does technology play in affecting our ability to focus?

18. Can focus be developed and strengthened through practice and training?

The person who reads the article carefully will find answers to all of these questions, even if they are not direct answers. Understanding the context will clarify all aspects.



In summary, the article emphasizes that focus is the key to success, and the person who can focus more on accomplishing their tasks is the biggest winner.

As a final note, to help accomplish any task that requires focus, which can be considered an answer to the question: What does focus require? The answer lies in understanding the task at hand, knowing where to start, and adapting quickly to the different aspects of the task.