A person cannot constantly work at his maximum power. His energy is falling, his strength is getting smaller, and his concentration is decreasing. In order for us to work productively, we must from time to time switch attention.
Definition
All people were faced with the fact that in the morning they can concentrate well on solving complex problems, and in the evening this becomes problematic. Why? A man spends his strength on making all kinds of everyday decisions, and for this reason by the evening he has neither the strength nor the desire to do something important. Recovery of energy helps switching attention. A simple technique gives good results if mastered to perfection. The brain will not get very tired if it does not work all the time for wear.
An intelligent person takes a break every 2 hours of productive activity. And in his free time he does not sit at the computer, but goes out to breathe air, does physical education or makes coffee. Changing activities is the best way to shift attention. But it’s not always possible to leave the table and take a walk. Sometimes you have to quickly change the sector of your tasks and concentrate on each of them. How to be in this situation?
Kinds
Switching attention is of two types:
- Intentional. In this case, a person by force of will forces himself to shift attention from one task to another. A good example: switching between several projects can often be seen in any office. And at home, people often work in multitasking mode. For example, a girl can wash dishes and talk on the phone at this time. Such a constant shift of attention will reduce the effectiveness of each of the individual cases, if the person performing them does not have this quick skill.
- Unintentional. Distractions accompany the person throughout the day. He can work hard, but a phone call will knock a person out of a state of deep thinking. Alerting social networks does not allow you to focus on a lesson for longer than 30 minutes. Radio or television, which play in the background, absorb attention, even if he is not aware of it.
How to determine your performance?
Switching attention and distributing it between tasks is a useful skill. But before doing the exercises, a person must understand his starting point. Each individual has his own rhythm of life and field of activity. Someone needs a strong concentration, and someone can work on the machine. How to determine the amount of your attention and its consumption per day? In the morning, immediately after waking up, sit down at the table and start writing any number or letter. Draw a row until you get stuck. Count the result. For example, you get 16 digits. The same test should be done during the day. Write a series of numbers closer to dinner, and then in the evening. Having looked at the result, it will become clear to you in what periods of time you will need to be distracted, relieve mental stress in order to rush into battle again.
Reading two books at the same time
The technique of switching attention is to train consciousness on a conscious and quick change of activity without loss of cognitive functions. How can a good result be achieved? You need to practice a simple exercise daily. Take two books of the same format and similar content. For example, it can be detective stories. Take an hour and start reading. You need to read both books alternately. Having finished one page in the first detective story, immediately go to the second. You need to concentrate on each book. After an hour, you should do a test. Write the contents of what you read from the first book, and then from the second. At first, the task will seem very difficult, and you can hardly verify yourself. Therefore, nothing bad will happen if you re-read the text again in the normal way. After six months of training, you can change your activities quickly and without loss of concentration.
Focus on emotions
Switching and sustainability of attention is needed not only to cope with working moments. Man is an emotional being. For this reason, it is not always possible to control oneself. If you want to become more restrained, you need to learn how to switch attention from what offends you to something else. For example, in a fit of anger, try to imagine your feeling. Mentally look around your body and think about exactly where you have accumulated anger. Come up with a form for him. It can be a cloud or some kind of beast. Mentally, you need to let anger out. A simple concentration and distraction allows a person to quickly cool down and not break off at his neighbor. You can practice this technique not only with negative, but also with positive emotions. Sometimes joy, pride or a good feeling about work interferes no less than grief.
Meditation
The distribution, switching and volume of attention varies depending on how much a person is interested in what is happening around. Perhaps you met your friend on the street who walked by without even saying hello. When you called out to a friend, he said that he was thinking. A person’s attention can be concentrated either inside him, in this position a person thinks, or outside, then the person feels what is happening next to her. It is difficult to concentrate on both. For this reason, simple meditation can help switch consciousness. There is no need to sit in the lotus position in order to clear the mind. It is enough to focus on your breath. Unnecessary thoughts will leave your head, and a semblance of a vacuum will remain in it. In this state, a person can sit down to work and achieve the highest concentration of attention.
Attention to the environment
Want to learn how to change your activities without losing concentration? The property of switching attention is that a person can do whatever he wants, but for this he will need to make incredible efforts. If the switching skill is trained, then quickly changing the scope of activity will be easy. One simple practice resembles meditation. You should, at the moment you decide to change occupation, be distracted and focus on the space surrounding you. Ask yourself:
- I see. What do you see. Without changing the angle of view, list to yourself all the objects and objects falling into the zone of visibility.
- I hear. Focus on the sounds reaching your ears. It can be snatches of a conversation, the buzz of a computer or a refrigerator, the sound of a working TV or children's laughter.
- I feel. Try to understand how you feel. You may be warm, cold, or hot. Maybe you want to drink or eat. Give yourself a full account of the sensations.