Hajra Naz
Trying to pay attention all day can be like a crazy ride. Sometimes you feel sharp and smart. Other times, it’s hard to focus for even a few minutes. So I asked myself:
How can I get better at paying attention?
I read books, and articles, and listened to talks. I also used my ideas. I found seven easy ways to help you focus better.
This might be helpful for people who have trouble paying attention, but anyone can use these tips.
Ready to learn?
Quick List (save this)
- Start the day slow
- Think quietly
- Write things down
Let’s start!
1. Have a low dopamine morning
I’ve embraced this crucial suggestion from neuroscientist Andrew Huberman to enhance my everyday focus.
People who have ADHD have less of a happy brain chemical called dopamine than most people. Dopamine helps us want to do things and get things. It’s like fuel for our brain to go and get rewards. Without enough, even easy things seem hard.
This is why it’s harder for people with ADHD to do slow, boring things. So they eat lots of food, do risky things, and look for quick thrills.
What you might not know is that every time your brain gets a big burst of happy chemicals, it crashes after. And each crash makes it harder to feel good later.
Read More: Successful Entrepreneurs Follow These 5 Morning Habits
So, how does a happy morning change how we work all day?
If you are like me, mornings look like this:
Get up
- Look at your phone (feel good)
- Eat big food (feel good)
- Drink coffee (feel good)
- Hurry to go outside (feel good)
- Listen to songs (feel good)
Our brains are full of happy feelings. It’s like wanting more and more of something. This makes it hard to do boring things because we want more happy feelings.
We can’t think well.
Here are easy ways to have a calm morning:
- Don’t look at your phone for a long time (put it away)
- Drink plain water
- Don’t drink coffee
- Eat small food
- Read a book part (slow, think, feel good)
2. Meditate
Learning to think quietly has changed how I pay attention. It helps me focus, even when my mind is busy.
If you want a clear head or a good start to your day, thinking quietly might help you focus better.
Thinking quietly means paying attention to your mind and what’s happening now. Doing this often helps the thinking part of your brain and the feeling part work better.
It’s hard to start thinking quietly. Our minds are always busy with lots of things. But it’s okay.
No time is bad for thinking quiet thoughts.
- You can do it for a short time, like five to ten minutes.
- Shut your eyes or focus on only one object.
- Stay quiet or say one word again and again.
I like using an app called ‘Oak’. It helps me think quiet thoughts. It is functional, free, and simple to use. It’s been a while since I used it, and I enjoy it.
3. Write things down
Writing things down helps me stay focused every day. This is something my Dad taught me.
After college, my life was crazy. My brain never stopped.
I asked my Dad (who also has a busy brain) for help. He said, “Write things down.”
I had written lots before – papers, schoolwork, forms. But he meant something different. He said to buy a special notebook and pen and write everything in it.
The first page was for my life goals. It was like magic! Almost all of them came true in a few years.
Writing helps a lot. It…
- Makes your thoughts clearer by slowing them down.
- Helps you focus on your work.
- It helps you remember things better.
Writing makes me work better, think more, feel calmer, and be more organized. I’ve done this for six years.
It doesn’t matter where you write, but it’s good to do it often.
I use Twos to write everything.
Twos is easy to use with Days, Lists, and Things. It’s like writing on paper but with cool tools:
- It tells you when to do things.
- It saves things you didn’t finish.
- You can see the old things you wrote.
I use Twos for all my ideas, things to do, dreams, and more. It always works.
If you want to start writing more, try Twos.
