Seven Secrets for Maximizing Your Concentration Skills - by Dumb Little Man

Find the Purpose in Your Work
It's hard to stay focused when you simply don't care. If you're doing a boring or frustrating task, look for the reason why.

Perhaps you're writing a grant application to win your organization much-needed funds. Sure, that application form might be tedious – but you're doing it for a great reason.

Or maybe you're studying for a particular qualification. You're not exactly gripped by the material, but you know that if you pass your exam, you'll be a step closer to your dream job.

When you've got a purpose in mind, you'll be motivated to do the work. And when you're motivated, it's much easier to concentrate.

Plan Before You Start
Have you ever started on a particular task, only to end up feeling overwhelmed or bewildered? Sometimes, it's a mistake to jump straight into a particular piece of work – you'll soon end up stuck.

So, any time you're tackling something big or something new, take a few minutes to plan out how it's going to work. What will you need to do first? Are you missing any pieces of information? Who can help show you what to do?

If you have a plan, it's easy to keep moving forwards. You won't suddenly stop and wonder what to do next (which kills concentration – it's all too easy to open up your email, or start browsing the net).

Take Regular Breaks
You might think that the best way to concentrate is to sit at your desk, stare grimly at the computer screen, and try to force yourself to work for hours at a time.

It's actually much more effective to work for short periods and then take breaks. If you're really focusing, you can't easily concentrate for more than about 45 minutes at a time. After that, you need to take a break to let your brain recharge.

Plus, if you know that you've got a scheduled break coming up, it's easier to stay on task. Instead of trying to work for three hours and getting distracted every ten minutes, you can tell yourself "I just need to concentrate for half an hour".

Shut Your Office Door
This one's deceptively simple – but are you doing it?

Sure, we don't all have offices with doors to shut. But wherever you're working, find a way to let people know that you're trying to concentrate.

That might mean telling your spouse and kids that you're going to be reading for an hour, and you'd appreciate it if they don't interrupt you. It might mean putting on headphones in an open-plan office, so that colleagues are less likely to interrupt you for a chat.

Eat Enough – But Not Too Much
If you're distracted by a growling stomach, you'll struggle to focus. Your attention levels drop when your blood sugar is low – and you'll probably find yourself in a bad mood, too.

Don't compensate by scoffing a huge lunch. Eating a big meal mid-day will make you sleepy and lethargic in the afternoon – killing your concentration. If you have a regular afternoon slump, try spacing out your food more evenly: instead of eating a huge lunch, have a sandwich and salad at noon and a granola bar or piece of fruit at 3pm, for instance.

Turn Off Your Internet Connection
Again, this is a really simple trick – but do you ever do it?

It's so easy to jump on Twitter or Facebook, click on a link, and end up spending ten minutes totally off-task. This might not be a big deal in itself, but every time you switch away from your work, you take time to get back into it again. You might lose the thread of your thoughts, or start to lose interest.

By turning off your internet connection, you remove a load of potential distractions. Just one hour each day without being plugged in can make a huge difference to your work. Unitasking is so much more efficient than multitasking.

Slow Down
The final secret to great concentration is to slow down.

If you live life in a rush, dashing from one thing to the next, it's no surprise that you find yourself frazzled and unable to focus. When you're in a hurry, you make mistakes much more easily – which results in wasted time while you put things right.

via dumblittleman.com

Well, due to the modern way of life, we all tend to get distracted, and usually this is not good, not good at all... To help you get back on track, here are 7 useful tips to get that productivity up and running again.

read more

#Productivity Tips

Well, if you ever thought of boosting your productivity, here are some myths that you should not take into consideration ...

Amplify’d from www.dumblittleman.com

5 Productivity Myths That Need to Be Busted

When there is so much advice and information on productivity floating around, it is obvious that not all of that is worth paying heed to. There are certain popular beliefs on productivity that some consider useful, which in reality do nothing but to hamper their efficiency. This article talks about five productivity myths which the sooner you come to know about and understand, the better. I'm sure most these tips are something you could actually relate to. Check them out.

Multitasking Works Let me set the record straight before I begin - I am not against multitasking. Some people can actually juggle tasks and accomplish all of them efficiently. But the fact is there aren't many people who can do it, especially in this age of information overload. Uni-tasking is far more effective if you want to get things done without compromising on quality. We've already published how mono-tasking is better than multi-tasking, and why this might be the age of uni-tasking. If you care about focusing, and focusing well, try your hand on one thing at a time.

Procrastination is "Always" Bad Procrastination is a basic human trait. Most of us are lazy by birth. We want to delay tasks and enjoy life, till they can be delayed. There are many negative effects of procrastination, no doubt. But, it isn't always bad to procrastinate.

Sometimes, it's important to take a step back, relax and just ignore what you do every day. It helps you assess the importance of things you do, prioritize them, and also helps to de-stress yourself. So it's good to procrastinate once in a while in order to recharge yourself.

The More You Work, the Better This might have been true in the industrial age, but not in this information age. Make no mistake, there's still no substitute for hard work; success doesn't come easy. But, it requires that you be productive and efficient. You need to decide what should be your focus and where you should channelize your energies. Sometimes, just 5 or 6 hours of work each day can get you results. But that has to be 5 or 6 hours of actual "work" and nothing else. And, you have to be consistent with that too; you gotta do it every day without fail.

The Same Productivity System Works for Everyone This is something I myself understood quite late. I would read productivity advice and then try my best to implement it. When I was unable to follow it, I couldn't understand where I was going wrong. Finally, after trying out various systems, I found out what's best for me. Since no two people are same, the same productivity system might not work for them. One might prefer to work till late, the other might be an early riser. The bottom line is that you need to try different productivity systems to see which of them fits you well.

It's Always About the System Finally, I think one of the biggest myths surrounding productivity is that one can always be productive by following certain steps, or by following a productive system. It's not always about the system. It's about you. I've read about people who suffer from disorders like ADHD and hence can't focus. But since they don't know about it, they cannot figure out why none of the productivity systems works for them. I've also read about people who don't like what they do, but still try out everything to focus and get things done, just to fail each time. The point is, if you just can't get things done, and this has been going on for a long time, then it's time to self-introspect and find out what this is all about.Read more at www.dumblittleman.com

See this Amp at http://bit.ly/9KBlo9

read more