How to Keep Your Focus in a World Full of Noise

Your email box is flooded. Your mobile phone keeps dinging with notifications. You get interrupted by one of your colleagues every 10 minutes with a question. The dog needs to go outside.

We live in a world filled with noise and distractions now more than ever before.

And experts say that the average person has an attention span of 9 seconds or less. Yep, we’re in competition with a goldfish.

Our lives are fast-paced and demanding. Our to-do lists are never-ending.

But before you throw your arms up in despair, the good news is, you’re not alone. Nowadays, we all struggle to keep our focus. 

Would you like some more good news? 

Our ability to focus is within our control, if we implement some healthy habits and heighten our awareness to our environments:

How you can help keep your focus 

Plan your day the night before: Write down your 3-5 most important tasks to complete for that day, and prioritize them accordingly. We can all feel overwhelmed, and when we don’t know where to start, we are often scattered and all over the place…..which brings us to the next point…

Focus on one thing at a time: No more multi-tasking! Many of you out there are probably convinced that you’re more productive when you multitask, but more studies are showing that the reverse is true. Giving one task all your attention will sharpen your focus and most likely increase the quality of your work.

Get rid of clutter and distractions: Whether you work in an office or work from home, be mindful of your workspace. Keep your area clean and organized, free from anything that could lead your mind astray. Whether that’s another to-do list, a photo album (we love to walk down memory lane when we have a major deadline!), a registration form for the gym, etc., these “little things” have the ability to set us back in a big way.

Give yourself technological restraints: There’s a good chance that turning your phone on silent might give you panic attack….what if you receive an important message that cannot wait? In most cases, it can wait. Turn your phone off or on silent for however long works best for you and plug away. If you’re a person who constantly gets interrupted by emails, designate 2-3 times in the day where you answer emails. You can always let your clients and colleagues know that you do this with your email signature.

Use the Pomodoro technique or another system: The Pomodoro technique is a time management system that has you working in 25-minute increments and then taking a short break. Every person is different with a different capacity to focus, so find the amount of time that works for you.

Stay well-rested and energized: Getting enough sleep and exercise is not only good for our physical health, but for our mental health as well. Even if you don’t have time to hit the gym, try to at least get out and walk. Walking (especially in nature), is a great way to disconnect and get the blood flowing, which calms our mind and generates creativity.

Remember the point of all your hard work: Reconnect with your WHY. What is the purpose of your efforts? To help someone? Whatever it is, reminding yourself of the end-goal will help you to stay on track.