- Attention Management Tutorial
- Attention Management - Home
- Attention Mngmt - Introduction
- What Causes Attention Deficit?
- Attention Deficit at Workplace
- Four Kinds of Attentive People
- Thinking Less Leads to Attention
- Types of Attention
- Meditation Improves Attention
- Activity to Increase Attentiveness
- Attention Zones Model
- Keeping Yourself Focused
- Why People Procrastinate?
- How to Overcome Procrastination?
- Prioritizing Your Time
- Attention Management Resources
- Attention Mngmt - Quick Guide
- Attention Management - Resources
- Attention Management - Discussion
Keeping Yourself Focused
It’s easy for someone to advise a person to “Stay Focused”, but it’s difficult for the same person to hold on to their focus themselves. The truth is that today, one can easily get distracted and overwhelmed with all the goals and plans in their busy lives. In such times, there are ways in which people can retain their stability and focus.
The One Minute Rule
We pay less attention to small errands and tasks because we tend to underestimate their value. Once these tasks pile up, they end up taking a lot more of time and attention than they would have originally taken.
Imagine not washing clothes for a month and then you wake up one day to the fact that you have no clean clothes. What’s worse, you will have to clean a huge pile of clothes now instead of a pair. The one-minute rule removes this type of a situation by making you focus on reducing stress. This one-minute rule teaches us that small tasks, when done daily, does not affect us much, but once they are left to be done later, they take a lot of time to be completed.
This one-minute rule tells us to ask ourselves, how much time will a few tasks like filing a paper, putting the books in the shelf, keeping our socks near the basket, etc., actually take. People realize that it takes only a minute to do these mundane tasks, but once they pile up, it can end up consuming an entire weekend’s worth of time to get the room clean and organized.
The Five Minute Rule
The Five-minute rule teaches us to take a five-minute break between every task as this will help us stay relaxed and focused on our work. In addition to that, the rest will help us complete one task before moving to another.
Developing a proper schedule helps you to have better time management. However, the most common mistake people make while making a schedule is they make it too strict. It is common to be overwhelmed with all the goal setting and scheduling. At the same time, it is also important to control your emotions and not let them control your actions or dictate your schedule.
This can be done by following the steps given below −
Stop − Panicking doesn’t help. It freaks you out and wastes time as well. Calm down and try to think about all the outcomes. Try to relax and think clearly before reacting.
Take Breaks − Focusing on your goal is important, but don’t forget to take a five minute break from your work to calm your mind and body. Short-term meditation or other relaxation techniques can help.
Break Down Tasks − Try completing a task by breaking them into smaller sections. This will give you a better picture of the work and will help you complete it faster in an organized way.
Sleep − It’s always important to get adequate amount of sleep, to relax your mind and get your head clear. A tired brain leads to inefficient work.