Last week, we kicked off the month with a few tips and tricks to improve focus at work. Here are a few more tips to improve concentration and help us become our best possible version at work.
- Try some caffeine
I love that internet meme that says: “But first, Coffee” It kind of summarizes the start of my day. Most of us need that caffeine kick to jump start our day and help inject a little personality into ourselves. Otherwise, we’d be a bunch of zombies trying to start work in hopeless need of brains.
But more kickstarting our day coffee can do so much more. Did you know that caffeine can improve mental focus and increase concentration. It’s like a shot of adrenalin. It gives you a quick boost of extra energy. The key (as with everything else in life) is moderation. With coffee, DOSE is important. Bet you didn’t know that the less caffeine you consume, the better it works? Your rain receptors respond normally to caffeine – the more you drink it, the more your body gets used to it. The effect gets less overtime. This is call attenuation. Economists will understand this as diminishing returns. So, save caffeine for when you need it. And remember that everything you take too much of has a negative effect.
- Take breaks
Ok listen. Let’s get one thing clear. You are NOT too busy to take breaks. Nobody is too busy to take breaks. I sometimes find myself wondering why some people think that being constantly busy is an awesome sign that they are being productive. I think the opposite is true. If you don’t have time to take breaks, then you are not being efficient aren’t you? Breaks are meant to super charge us and revitalize us. It gives us second wind and gives us time to recalibrate our focus.
Scientific research actually backs this up. It’s a universal truth that if you spend a long time doing the same task, chances are, you begin to lose your focus after a while. It’s like when you focus your attention on a stationary object and everything else disappears from view, taking breaks allows us to stay focused on things that need our full attention.
- Keep work at work
Keeping work at work can be quite a problem for those who work from home. Office workers can always train themselves to NOT take any work home (unless absolutely necessary) but when you work from HOME, you have no choice in the matter. However there are ways to psychologically condition yourself. First is to have a home office. I understand that we can’t all have that perfect home office…or a spare room for that matter to use as a home office. But if you can carve out a designated area in your home to use as a home office, then you can get into the mindset that work stays at work. Yo can boost your productivity further by keeping that area uncluttered.
- Train your brain
Some of us play games during our breaks to keep ourselves entertained. While Pokemon Go is a great option, why not use this downtime to improve your focus. Games like CogniFit, Elevate, Lumosity, Mindnode, and Brain Traning: Focus are just some mobile apps that can help you improve your focus while having fun. These apps are available in iOS and Google Play.
I hope you find these tips useful. If you have some tips for us, we’d love for you to share them in the comments. As always, remember to: Stay Humble, Hustle Hard. Good luck!
Written by Jaie O.- The Help