how to fix your attention span
Summary
TLDRThe video highlights the growing struggle to maintain focus in a world filled with distractions, such as smartphones and short-form content. The speaker discusses personal challenges in staying attentive during activities like watching long movies or working, offering practical tips to improve focus. These include setting clear intentions, managing distractions, breaking down tasks, and consuming media intentionally. The video also emphasizes the importance of practicing mindfulness, reducing screen time, and gradually regaining control over attention spans to achieve deeper concentration and productivity.
Takeaways
- đż Setting intentions can help you stay focused on your tasks and avoid distractions like scrolling through social media.
- đ± Acknowledge and resist impulses to check your phone or other distractions, asking yourself why you're reaching for it.
- đ§ââïž Let random, intrusive thoughts come and go without engaging, a skill that can be improved through meditation.
- đ« Reduce distractions by eliminating alternatives like setting screen time limits or enabling grayscale mode on your phone.
- đĄ Get emotionally invested in your work by playing relevant soundtracks to make focusing feel more natural and enjoyable.
- đ Break down large tasks into smaller, manageable parts to make the work less overwhelming and easier to focus on.
- â Avoid multitasking to give each task your full attention and produce higher-quality results.
- đ§ Consume media intentionally, opting for longer-form content that requires thinking and engagement instead of short, quick dopamine hits.
- đ Try being present during walks or downtime without consuming any media to regain control of your focus and mind.
- đ Gradually reduce screen time limits instead of aggressive reductions, making the transition easier and more sustainable.
Q & A
What is the main issue the speaker highlights regarding focus in modern times?
-The speaker highlights that focus is becoming scarcer due to constant distractions like smartphones and social media, making it difficult to stay attentive for prolonged periods.
Why does the speaker believe setting clear intentions is important for maintaining focus?
-The speaker believes that without clear intentions, it's easy to get distracted, such as checking a phone for work purposes and ending up scrolling through social media. Setting intentions helps align actions with goals and reduce distractions.
How does the speaker recommend handling intrusive thoughts while working?
-The speaker recommends letting intrusive thoughts come and go without engaging with them. Observing these thoughts, possibly writing them down, and practicing meditation can help in managing distractions.
What role does meditation play in improving focus, according to the speaker?
-Meditation helps by training the mind to observe thoughts without reacting to them, reducing stress, and improving focus. The speaker shares personal experience from meditating during college, which improved academic performance.
What practical tip does the speaker offer to minimize distractions from smartphones?
-The speaker suggests enabling grayscale mode on smartphones to reduce the appeal of colorful, dopamine-inducing videos and also recommends gradually reducing screen time by setting time limits.
How does the speaker suggest getting emotionally invested in work to improve focus?
-The speaker recommends using relevant soundtracks to get emotionally invested in tasks. For example, playing the Oppenheimer soundtrack while studying physics to feel like a scientist can make focusing easier and more enjoyable.
What advice does the speaker give for breaking down large tasks?
-The speaker advises breaking large tasks into smaller, manageable chunks to reduce overwhelm and improve focus. This also prevents multitasking, allowing full attention on one task at a time.
How does consuming media intentionally contribute to better focus, according to the speaker?
-The speaker explains that consuming longer, more thoughtful mediaâsuch as educational videos or podcastsâencourages deeper engagement and reduces the craving for instant gratification from short-form content, improving focus.
What is the significance of managing 'alternatives' while trying to focus, as explained by the speaker?
-The speaker emphasizes that being aware of easier, more entertaining alternatives (like opening a YouTube tab) can weaken focus. By reducing these alternatives, such as through time limits on apps, it's easier to stay focused.
Why does the speaker recommend gradually reducing screen time limits instead of making drastic changes?
-The speaker suggests that sudden, drastic reductions in screen time limits are likely to fail because they are too aggressive. Gradually reducing usage helps users adjust more realistically to new limits.
Outlines
đ„ The Challenge of Modern Attention Spans
The paragraph opens by setting a familiar scene: going to the movies with friends, but quickly transitions to the struggle of staying focused during long films. The protagonist is tempted to check their phone after just 30 minutes, craving a dopamine hit. This example is used to highlight a larger issue: the modern-day difficulty in maintaining focus, even during leisurely activities. The paragraph introduces the central theme that our attention spans are shrinking in an age of constant digital distractions.
đ§ Set Clear Intentions to Combat Distractions
This section delves into the importance of setting clear intentions to avoid distractions. It explains how we often unconsciously drift into distractions like social media, snacks, or chatting with others, justified by our impulses. The author advises observing these urges and questioning them with a simple 'why?' to bring awareness to the real reason behind the distraction. Setting clear, articulated intentions before using your phone or stepping away from work can help maintain focus. Personal anecdotes emphasize how these strategies have helped the author overcome habitual distractions.
đ§ Let Intrusive Thoughts Come and Go
This paragraph focuses on handling intrusive thoughts that distract from work. The author suggests acknowledging these thoughts but not engaging with them, comparing this practice to meditation, where the goal is to become an observer of the mind. The paragraph also reflects on the authorâs personal experience with meditation, which helped them manage stress and focus, especially during challenging times like the COVID-19 lockdown. Meditation is promoted as a valuable tool to build mental discipline and manage distractions.
đ Sponsor Highlight: Course Hero
Here, the author shifts to a sponsorship plug, introducing Course Hero, an AI-powered study tool. They demonstrate how Course Hero can assist with understanding difficult academic material by uploading study documents and receiving step-by-step explanations. The service also offers textbook solutions, practice questions, and course-specific resources. The sponsorâs features are illustrated with examples, emphasizing how Course Hero helps students with homework and comprehension.
đ Remove Alternatives to Stay Focused
The next tip addresses how distractions stem from knowing you have alternatives like social media or entertainment. The author recommends setting screen time limits on phones, but advises against drastic reductions. Instead, they suggest gradually lowering time limits to ease the adjustment. Another strategy includes making distractions less tempting, such as enabling grayscale mode on your phone to make colorful content less appealing. This gradual, methodical approach helps reduce distractions and improve focus over time.
đ¶ Get Emotionally Invested in Your Work
This paragraph encourages readers to immerse themselves emotionally in their tasks to naturally enhance focus. The author suggests playing soundtracks that match the subject matter to help boost engagement, providing examples like 'The Social Network' for coding or 'Oppenheimer' for science studies. By framing your work as an exciting challenge, focus becomes easier and more enjoyable. The author emphasizes that emotional investment makes focus feel effortless, and they provide links to their own work playlists for further inspiration.
đ Break Down Big Tasks Into Manageable Pieces
The author advises breaking down large, daunting tasks into smaller, more manageable chunks to avoid feeling overwhelmed. This approach helps with both starting and maintaining focus on each part of a project. They stress that multitasking should be avoided, as it can dilute focus and reduce the quality of work. By focusing on one task at a time and breaking it into smaller parts, students can better grasp fundamentals and improve their productivity and memory.
đș Consume Media Intentionally
In the final tip, the author encourages intentional media consumption, particularly avoiding excessive short-form content that leads to instant gratification and weakens attention spans. Instead, they recommend watching longer videos or listening to podcasts that require more engagement, naming channels like 'Veritasium' and 'Tom Scott' as examples of quality content. The author also highlights the benefits of taking breaks from media altogether, such as going for walks without distractions, which can help restore focus and mental clarity.
Mindmap
Keywords
đĄFocus
đĄDistractions
đĄIntention
đĄDopamine
đĄMultitasking
đĄTime limits
đĄMeditation
đĄBreaking down tasks
đĄGrayscale mode
đĄIntentional media consumption
Highlights
Your focus is one of the most precious resources, and in today's world, it's scarcer than ever.
Many people struggle to watch movies or read books because of declining attention spans.
It's impossible to be 100% laser-focused all the time, but there are steps you can take to improve your focus.
Tip 1: Set your intentions clearly before starting work to reduce the likelihood of distractions.
When distracted by impulses like reaching for your phone, ask yourself why to confront the real reasons.
Tip 2: Let intrusive thoughts come and go without engaging, a skill that can be improved with practice.
Meditation helps manage stress and thoughts, especially in academic settings.
Tip 3: Remove tempting alternatives by setting up time limits or reducing the appeal, such as enabling grayscale mode on your phone.
Gradually reduce screen time limits to avoid overwhelming yourself and increase success.
Tip 4: Get emotionally invested in tasks by using soundtracks or imagining yourself as a genius working on a breakthrough.
Tip 5: Break down large tasks into smaller, manageable chunks to improve focus and reduce scatterbrained feelings.
Avoid multitasking and instead tackle tasks one at a time for higher-quality output.
Breaking tasks down also helps with understanding the fundamentals and improving memory.
Tip 6: Consume media intentionally by focusing on longer content that encourages thinking and engagement rather than constant dopamine hits.
Regaining control of your focus involves balancing short-form content with longer, thoughtful media or moments of stillness.
Transcripts
imagine this you go to the movies with
your friends you buy some snacks you
find your seats and you sit down and
wait for the show to start your friend
is bubbling with excitement he's telling
you all about the movie he's telling you
who stars in it but then he tells you
something that you're not too happy
about it's 3 hours long you're not sure
if you have the attention span for that
the movie begins and 30 minutes in you
feel this weird sensation you feel this
strong urge to go on your phone you try
to resist you know your friend wouldn't
like that you know that would make him
upset but the movie is just moving so
incredibly slowly so you cave in you
grab your phone and you start scrolling
through social media and finally your
brain has that Rush of dopamine it's
been craving all night long look I
genuinely believe your focus is one of
the most precious resources that you
have and unfortunately we're living in
an era where that resource is scarcer
than ever I often have people telling me
that they not only struggle to work but
that they struggle to watch movies that
they struggle to read books that they
struggle to do anything that requires
their attention for a prolonged period
of time now listen I have some good news
and I have some bad news the bad news is
is that it's impossible to be 100% laser
focused all the time I don't have that
ability nobody has that ability but
there are steps you can take to get
pretty close so here are a few of my
tips tip number one set your intentions
while we're working many of us don't
even even realize when we get distracted
we might be doing our work for 1 minute
and then end up scrolling through Tik
Tok for the next 10 and then when we
look up from our phones we're kind of
like what just happened this usually
happens because our intentions don't
line up with what we actually do for
example we'll go on our phone to look up
a word but we'll somehow end up
scrolling through Tik Tok we'll go to
grab a snack because we're hungry but
we'll end up chatting with our siblings
for 30 minutes usually while we're
working we'll have these impulses to go
on our phone to grab a snack to even go
to the bathroom and we'll be very fast
to justify these feelings we'll convince
ourselves that we have a very valid
reason for stepping away from our work
but you need to observe these impulses
and not be too quick to act on them for
example if you catch yourself reaching
for your phone ask yourself one question
why this sounds silly but actually ask
yourself why am I reaching for my phone
because when you have to confront and
acknowledge the reason nine times out of
10 you'll realize you might be looking
for an out that you're trying to find a
way to escape your work and just having
this awareness can help you stay on
track for example over the past few
months I've realized I have a bad habit
of grabbing a snack or getting water
even though I'm not hungry or thirsty
most of the time I just want a reason to
stop my work so I can go outside and
bother mahad okay but let's say your
intention is legitimate let's say you
have to look up a word or respond to an
email in this case I recommend you
clearly articulate your intention either
in your head out loud or even on a piece
of paper to lower are the chances of you
getting distracted for example if you
have to go on your phone to do something
work related tell yourself I'm going to
do X Y and Z and then put my phone down
setting these intentions explicitly will
help you cut any distractions that come
your way tip number two let them come
and go while you're working you might
have random thoughts pop up out of
nowhere and these thoughts are going to
do all they can to take you away from
your work but you cannot let them win
most of the time these thoughts won't
even be related to your work for example
out of nowhere you might start thinking
about your favorite TV show or about
your weekend plans the key here is to
let these intrusive thoughts come and go
observe and acknowledge them maybe even
write them down if you want to come back
to them later but ultimately do not
engage with them of course this is
easier said than done this is a skill
you're going to have to practice but
there are a few ways you can make it
easier first practice meditation a huge
part of meditation is literally just
becoming an observer of your mind and
letting these intrusive thoughts and
ideas come and go and more broadly
meditating is also a great way to
relieve the stress of being a student
and Escape all the chaos I'll be honest
I don't meditate that often anymore I
feel like I've gotten relatively good at
managing my thoughts and stress but
during my senior year of college when I
was locked home during covid there was
this one month period when I would
meditate every single day and doing so
helped a ton with my academics and you
know what else will help with your
academics the sponsor of this video
course hero course hero is an AI study
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I'll take this document upload it to
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tip number three remove Alternatives
sometimes it's hard to focus because
you're aware of what you could be doing
instead for example while you're doing
your homework you're very aware that you
can simply open up a new tab and watch
some YouTube videos you're very aware
that you can grab your phone and scroll
through a couple Tik toks or many Tik
toks knowing that these Alternatives
exist and knowing that they're easily
accessible makes it hard to focus so my
first tip here is to immediately set up
time limits because that takes away your
phone as an alternative but you might be
saying gohart I've tried setting time
limits but they don't work for me well
you might be too aggressive with your
limits for example if you spend an
average of 4 hours per day on social
media and suddenly limit your usage to
30 minutes you are going to have a very
tough time you'll probably just dismiss
the time limit notification whenever it
pops up and go about your day so instead
I recommend you gradually reduce your
limit take a look at your average screen
time for your most used apps take 90% of
those numbers and set those as your
screen time limits a few days later set
your limits to 80% of those numbers and
keep working your way down until you're
happy with your average phone usage you
can also try to make your Alternatives
less enticing for example a huge appeal
of going on your phone is that dopamine
rush you get from watching colorful and
entertaining videos so what if those
videos were black and white it probably
wouldn't be as fun anymore so as I've
suggested before if you're struggling to
stay off your phone try enabling
grayscale mode on your iPhone you can do
this by going to settings accessibility
display and text size and color filters
and enable grayscale on Android the
steps might vary depending on the exact
model of your phone so just search up
your phone model's name followed by
grayscale tip number four get
emotionally invested okay so removing
Alternatives is an effective way to
enhance your focus but it feels like a
forceful way it almost feels like you're
punishing yourself a much more effective
and fulfilling way of staying focused is
by getting emotionally invested and I
mean like really getting into it because
once you find that genuine passion or
spark for whatever you're working on you
won't even have to try to focus it'll
just happen naturally okay so this might
sound a little cringe but here's what I
recommend you do take whatever subject
you're working on and find a relevant
soundtrack play that soundtrack while
you're working and just imagine you're
some mad scientist or genius on the
brink of a breakthrough if you're
studying physics or chemistry throw on
the Oppenheimer soundtrack if you're
studying computer science throw on The
Social Network soundtrack or even if
you're just coding this is such a great
soundtrack if you're studying history
I've heard Lord of the Rings is pretty
good though I haven't tried that one let
me know if you like it I have a handful
of other soundtracks and playlists I
listen to while working which I'll link
in the description of this video tip
number five break down tasks if your
to-do list only contains tasks that are
big and daunting you're going to run
into two issues first you're going to
have a hard time getting started because
the tasks feel too overwhelming second
when you start these tasks you're going
to feel a little scatterbrained because
you won't know which part to tackle
first so to really reain in that Focus I
recommend you take these bulky tasks and
break them down into smaller chunks not
only will the work feel more manageable
but you'll be able to better concentrate
on each individual piece and here's the
most important part do not tackle
multiple Parts at once multitasking
might feel like an effective way to put
out more work and less time but
ultimately it's just a way to divert
your focus and put out lower quality
stuff instead go from task to task in
succession so you can give each one your
full Focus also the benefits of this
approach go beyond just focus breaking
things down in general is a great way to
understand the fundamentals and even
improve your memory all right and then
tip number six consume media
intentionally look I think short form
content isn't the best for our attention
spans we all now crave that instant
gratification that comes from watching
video after video after video and
because the algorithms are so good at
giving us these quick hits of dopamine
we have no tolerance for Stillness
that's why lately I've been trying to
consume media more intentionally more
specifically I've been trying to consume
longer media media that requires me to
think to listen and to engage media that
doesn't just bombard me with an
incessant stream of stimuli don't get me
wrong I still watch short form content
but maybe during dinner I'll throw on a
long firm video about history or science
some of my favorite channels have been
answer in progress when over production
veritasium Mark robber also Tom Scott
but it's so sad that he retired maybe on
a walk I'll listen to a podcast I've
actually been listening to Founders
lately which is a super interesting
podcast if you're interested in business
or entrepreneurship or even history and
sometimes and most importantly I won't
consume any media at all on many of my
walks I'll just try to be super present
and enjoy the silence or the subtle
Sounds of Nature and doing this on a
consistent basis has helped me feel like
I've regained control of my mind and my
focus all right guys that wraps up
today's video join my Discord server if
you want homework help check out next
admit if you need college to help and
I'll see you again next week
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