10 Ways to Improve My Focus

Not being able to focus might be a sign my subconscious mind is telling me I'm not working on the right things.

Though I customize it to fit me. For example, I don't always set the timer for the suggested 25 minutes, it could be 15, 30, 45, etc. I enter the time boxing thinking "I need to get focused and will try my best for at least X minutes." If I fail once the timer goes off, I'll reassess the situation. But if I'm in a deep flow state at that point, there's no reason to stop - keep going (unless there's an emergency that needs your attention)!

The old adage "work comes before play" is probably the most old-school way but it may not work for everyone (consistently, at least for me.) If staying focused seems like an uphill battle, temporarily tend to your distractions for while. Time box a period to do those things, whether it's checking email, contacting a friend, shopping, playing a game, checking social media, etc. Then get back to your task at hand. Most likely than not, your distractions will be less of a barrier this time around.

I find they no longer race around in my head after I've written them down, at least for the time being. Always have NotePD available for this! If the thought of other things you need to do is cluttering your head, do them right now instead (if they're more urgent) or make a to-do list or add them to your planner (if they're not as urgent.)

This includes getting enough sleep, eating enough nutritious foods, going to the bathroom before trying to enter a flow state, eliminating all obvious distractions from your workspace (or picking a workspace that has fewer potential distractions.)

Like when you were 100% focused on reading a book, playing a video game, talking to a person, etc. and barely noticed things happening around you. What were the conditions that were conducive to your focus that time? Can you recreate as many of them as possible in your current environment for your particular task?

This includes coworkers (if you're in an office) or your kids, parents, spouse/SO, roommates, etc. if you're working from home. Not only will you reduce the chance that they'll provide unnecessary distractions but they'll know if you failed to focus and you also end up enlisting their help in holding yourself accountable that way.

Preferably something simple, catchy, and repetitive. This is my go-to song that I've bookmarked for the purpose but use whatever works for you. I did this from time to time over the years and recently learned Matt Mullenweg (creator of Wordpress) uses a similar technique.

Don't waste time trying to focus on getting a task done if it's not urgent. Do something else in the meantime. This is especially true if you're emotional or tired and it's getting in the way of your focus. If it is urgent, a lot of times, the urgency will naturally push your focus to superhuman levels even under less than ideal conditions otherwise. Some people might think of this as procrastination but use your judgement whether or not it's worth risking waiting later for a better time to focus on it.

If you've tried meditation, you know what I mean: constantly pressuring your mind to stay blank. Except when focusing, you constantly pressure your mind to stay on task. Don't spend every second doing that and have a perfectionist attitude towards your focus; I personally find that counterproductive but do get into a habit of noticing every once in a while when your focus shifts and bring it back.