7 Tricks That Instantly Improve Your Focus

Maybe you have a big exam coming up that you need to study for; maybe your project at work is a week behind schedule and you need to catch up before your boss catches on. Maybe, you just hate how much your mind wanders when you want to get anything done. No matter the reason, you want to improve your ability to focus.

It seems you're in luck: Research shows it is entirely possible to hone your focus and accomplish tasks faster. In fact, you can do so immediately by trying any of the following tricks when you need to focus for long periods of time.

Mono-Tasking

We often tout great multitaskers as the gods of our age, but science as well as common sense tells us that having many objectives at once is terrible for focus. The problem seems to be that the working memory is not good at concentrating on several disparate problems, so every task you try to complete suffers. The solution is obvious: You need to train your brain to focus on what you are doing right now, whether it is a project at work or a conversation with a friend. You must avoid thinking ahead to future tasks or switching between tasks before one is complete to hone your focus to a laser-point.

Taking Small Steps

It is important to have grand, over-arching goals like lose weight or get promoted, but your brain (and your heart) usually struggle to reach these ambitious objectives because there is no certain route to success. As a result, your mind wanders, and you never accomplish your dreams. To improve your focus, you need to break down your goals into concrete steps with obvious paths. For example, you might strive to master the 25-pound deadlift or gain a spot on a project that will bring you recognition at work. Then, your attention is more easily focused on the particular task at hand.

Disconnecting

Tech is easily the biggest distraction of the modern age. The ability to connect with anyone at any time is incredibly tempting, which leads most office workers to check their email inboxes about 30 times per hour and their phones more than 40 times per day. As mentioned above, multitasking of any sort is the enemy of focus, so disconnecting from your tech might be exactly what you need to regain your concentration.

Indulging Yourself

It is possible to sustain your focus, but not indefinitely. Your brain needs breaks, and during those breaks, you should feel free to indulge your desires. Relieving stress is a significant step for developing a focused mind, so the best activities are those that make you feel relaxed: getting a massage, eating a cookie, or vaping on e-cigarettes, for example. Most importantly, you should avoid committing yourself to tasks that require your focus or increase your stress, like playing high-action video games or paying bills.

Exercising

When you find your mind wandering, you can rein in your focus by moving your body, instead. A study from the University of British Columbia uncovered that regular aerobic exercise ? that is, workouts that make you breathe faster and heavier ? actually increases the size of the brain area associated with memory and learning. Plus, exercise encourages the brain to release chemicals that increase blood flow, which is essential for focus. Therefore, if you feel distracted, you should do a few push-ups or jumping jacks to regain your concentration.

Drinking Water

According to the University of Connecticut, just a mild amount of dehydration is enough to completely alter your brain, changing your mood, energy level, and ability to think. In fact, when you first start to feel thirsty, you are likely already at least 2 percent dehydrated, by which time your brain functions will be impaired. When your focus starts slipping, one of the best things you can do is start sipping water ? and you should keep enough water nearby to prevent future dehydration.

Sleeping Well

While you sleep, your brain moves your short-term memories into long-term storage. If you are having difficulty remembering a particular concept, you might just need a nap. Research performed at Saarland University found that sleeping for about 90 minutes improved participants' ability to remember by a factor of five. Before and after you need to focus, you might try taking a cat-nap for a dramatic brain boost.