You know those machines they use for drawing lotto numbers, with numbered ping pong balls bouncing around inside? Sometimes my brain feels like that. Dozens of little brain pong balls bouncing around and demanding my attention.
Needless to say, focus can be a challenge. So I was especially interested in this article on the brain science behind why it can be hard to focus, and what to do about it.
It turns out that focusing is less about maintaining attention and more about managing distractions. Putting the brakes on when those distractions pop up, as it were. Unfortunately, the area of our brain responsible for that braking action isn't especially adept at it. As the writer, David Rock (author of the new book, Your Brain at Work), notes:
Our braking system is part of the most fragile, temperamental and energy-hungry region of the brain, the prefrontal cortex. Because of this, your braking system only works at its best every now and then. If cars were built like this you'd never survive your first drive down to the store.
When you put those brakes on can play an important role. The earlier, the better.
It turns out that, like the old saying goes, timing is everything. Once you take an action, an energetic loop commences that makes it harder to stop that action. Many activities have built-in rewards, in the form of increased arousal that holds your attention. Once you open your email program and see the messages from people you know, it's so much harder to stop yourself from reading them. Most motor or mental acts also generate their own momentum.
So what does that mean to your efforts to stay focused and productive? Here's what Rock suggests:
And here's a big take away from all this. Manage what you focus on. Pay attention to your attention, and stop yourself from getting on the wrong train of thought early, before it takes over. This is the oppositive of being mindless: it's being mindful.
The best way to do that is to practice being aware of your own thoughts, by activating your observer function.
Put another way, the more aware you are of what's going on in your mind, the more potential you have to guide where those brain pong balls go, and which ones you choose to act on.
How about you? What helps you focus?
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