Life Hacks

6 Steps to Improve Focus and Attention with Intention

Insights from a person diagnosed with attention deficit disorder in childhood but made his living with the power of his focus and attention.

Focus and attention determine your success in life, and you can improve these cognitive abilities with lifestyle choices.

Focus and attention are critical for survival and well-being. Yet, some people neglect to develop these essential cognitive functions, or some don’t take precautions for their improvement, affected by lifestyle factors, aging, or health conditions.

When people ask me what key skills allow me to make my living, I say intentional focus and attention with problem-solving and risk management abilities. Ironically, I was not the only one with so-called cognitive disorders in childhood. For example, Albert Einstein was another one.

In previous posts, I wrote about cognitive abilities, such as task-switching, working memory, procedural memory, cognitive flexibility, and problem-solving, reflecting my personal and professional insights.

In this story, I write about focus and attention, critical mental capabilities for survival, and personal and professional development.

In this frenetic world, distractions are ubiquitous. Our focus and attention are constantly pulled in different directions, adversely affecting our creativity, productivity, health, and happiness.

Even though attention and focus look like merely psychological constructs, they also have biological connections. Thus, I cover both aspects holistically in the six steps I introduce.

An important mental aspect of these cognitive features is intention. Intention refers to a mental state of being purposeful and deliberate in our decisions and actions. It involves consciously focusing our attention and energy on a particular goal.

Focus and attention can be developed and improved with intention and practice. Therefore, I will discuss the science behind focus and attention without going into scientific and technical details.

As a writer with a science background, I can simplify complex and abstract concepts and mechanisms. As a practitioner, I introduce practical strategies for improving these skills based on my experience and observations of the people I help.

I structured this article under several headings to make it helpful and understandable, only focussing on the critical points.

The Meaning of Focus and Attention

Focus and attention are related terms, but they are also different. I will explain the details in simple terms. The focus is considered an elevated version of attention at the highest level. But there is more to it from a scientific angle.

Focus refers to concentrating on a specific task while filtering out environmental distractions. When focusing, we direct our mental resources toward a specific goal, ignoring irrelevant information but maintaining concentration.

Attention means concentrating on a specific aspect of the setting while suppressing other sensory inputs. It is about allocating mental resources to relevant environmental stimuli while filtering out irrelevant or distracting information from the external or internal world.

For example, when you are reading a book on a busy train ride, you can focus and will be able to concentrate on the text and ignore the background noise of other people talking. By paying attention, you can selectively attend to the relevant information in the book while deliberately ignoring irrelevant information.

My Misdiagnosed Attention Deficit Disorder

In hindsight, after examining my childhood in my adulthood years intellectually and intuitively, especially when I started studying cognitive science, I discovered that I did not have attention deficit disorder (ADD) which was misdiagnosed by a well-intentioned GP but misinformed my parents and caused concerns unnecessarily at the time.

In the early years of primary school, a teacher was concerned about my fascination with objects and conversations about fantasies that I linked to irrelevant points. The teacher thought I daydreamed too much and got sidetracked by events and discussions, even though I always got the highest marks in those classes.

When the teacher told us a story, I linked it to many other stories and created new stories out of them. Everything they said or showed us fascinated me, making many new meanings in my fresh brain, hungry for information and building knowledge.

When that specific teacher got concerned and informed my parents to get professional advice, they took me to a doctor who diagnosed me with ADD without referring me to specialists like psychiatrists, as they were uncommon in the country we lived in those days.

So the doctor did his best and prescribed medication. I had no idea about the prescribed medication then. My parents couldn’t remember it either. But I guess it was Ritalin, commonly prescribed for ADD patients. As a docile and optimistic kid, I took it, and the focus on objects and events intensified.

Yes, I was sidetracked due to my fascination with knowledge and stories, but I was not impulsive, restless, hyperactive, or forgetful, which are the main symptoms of ADD. The family doctor had a tenuous understanding of this condition and seemed to jump to a conclusion with little evidence.

Fortunately, in the fifth year of primary school, an experienced teacher identified my relatively higher IQ via a measurable test and my extensive fascination with knowledge, so he labeled me as gifted and proposed my parents remove me from that school and send me to a special school.

I did not know what gifted meant in those days, but I found myself in the middle of a problem I will cover in another story. In short, I felt like a racehorse in my early school years, which curved my creativity and created some traumatic experiences, especially after one of my schoolmates committed suicide in secondary school.

Fortunately, I had no issues with my academic achievements even though some teachers believed I was over-focussed on details. I completed my tertiary and postgraduate studies on time, even while working full-time in the field with a young family.

After studying the biology and psychology of the brain for over three decades, I’d like to explain two crucial brain regions related to focus and attention, which my family doctor might not have known about in those years and caused unnecessary concerns for teachers and parents.

An Overview of Neocortex and Default Mode Network to Understand the Mechanism of Focus and Attention

1 — The Role of the Frontal Lobe for Focus and Attention

The neocortex is the outermost layer of the brain. Scientists conceptualize it as four partitions: the frontal, parietal, temporal, and occipital lobes. The neocortex is responsible for higher-order functions such as sensory perception, cognition, and conscious thought.

For this story, the relevant partition is the frontal lobe responsible for executive functions.

The frontal lobe is crucial for focus and attention control. It involves several cognitive processes necessary, such as working memory, procedural memory, inhibition, and cognitive flexibility, which I introduced in previous stories.

In summary:

Working memory allows us to hold and manipulate information momentarily.

Procedural memory is essential for developing motor skills and habits, allowing us to perform tasks with speed and accuracy.

Inhibition is the ability to suppress irrelevant or distracting information.

Cognitive flexibility is switching between different mental task sets.

People with damage to the prefrontal cortex have difficulty with attentional control. For example, they have problems maintaining attention, filtering irrelevant information, and switching between tasks.

2 — The role of the Default Mode Network for Focus and Attention

The brain’s default mode network (DMN), also known as the resting-state network, is a group of brain regions active when we are not engaged in specific tasks or not focused on the external world intentionally or unintentionally.

The DMN includes several brain regions, like “the medial prefrontal cortex, posterior cingulate cortex, precuneus, inferior parietal lobule, and inferolateral temporal cortex.” These regions are interconnected and communicate with each other when the DMN is active.

The mechanism behind DMN is not fully understood, but researchers study it intensely. Nevertheless, compelling hypotheses inform that DMN is involved in cognitive processes, such as self-reflection, mentalizing, identity, self-awareness, and autobiographical memory retrieval.

The critical point is that when we are not engaged in a specific task or focused on the external world, the DMN becomes more active than the prefrontal lobe. DMN’s activity can lead to daydreaming or rumination.

Even though DMN is valuable for our creativity, as it was in my childhood, as I still use it for my innovative work, over-activation of it for a prolonged time is associated with mental disorders such as ADD/ADHD, anxiety, and depression.

Therefore, I deliberately activate my neocortex, regulate the limbic system, and tame the amygdala to lower the negative impacts of DMN.

In the following section, I provide a quick overview of the six steps to give you an idea based on my experience. I only highlight the critical points as most of them are self-explanatory.

Step 1 — Meet the fundamental requirements of the body and mind for holistic health.

I highlight this point in all my cognition-related articles, as the brain is a biological, chemical, and electrical organ hosting our mind. The brain needs oxygen, nutrition, energy, sleep, movement, hydration, and fun.

We need to get enough restorative sleep nightly as it is essential for cognitive functions. Sleep deprivation can lead to decreased focus and attention. I used to get only five hours of sleep, believing I could be more creative and productive, but my focus and attention suffered.

When I started getting eight hours of restorative sleep, my cognitive abilities skyrocketed, and my stress lowered, as evident in fixing elevated cortisol. We also need to rest the brain, as I cover in step #4.

The brain is an energy-hungry organ needing glucose and fat molecules to function. It needs micronutrients like minerals and vitamins. Thus consuming enough calories and getting essential nutrients for brain health and cognitive performance from whole foods can be valuable.

Water is another essential substance for brain health; therefore, we must stay hydrated with clean water and electrolytes.

Every cell (neuron) in the brain needs oxygen. Thus, we need clean air and oxygenating the body with proper breathing and some breathing exercises.

For neurons and connective tissues of the brain to get oxygen, we need blood flow to the brain. The most effective way is to move the body and perform regular workouts. Exercise can also activate the lymphatic system and clear the garbage from the brain.

Step 2 — Try single-tasking instead of multitasking.

Even though the brain seems to multitask, it cannot when closely examined. It looks like an illusion, as our perceptions cannot see millisecond switches. Attention and focus can be on one function at a time.

However, we can move our attention and focus from one to another quickly. It is called task-switching, which is another cognitive function. Improving task-switching using attention, focus, working memory, and procedural memory is possible.

Identifying the brain’s single-task orientation is impossible unless we use nanoscale simulations. Scientists do such simulations using technology tools and applications nowadays.

Multitasking might seem like an efficient way to get things done, but it can be a significant distraction that hinders our ability to focus and pay attention.

Unfortunately, some motivational speakers who don’t understand how the brain function still recommend multitasking. They cause unnecessary burnout to employees or entrepreneurs, pushing them into the danger zone.

Instead of trying multiple things simultaneously, you may prioritize tasks and focus on one thing at a time to improve efficiency and reduce distractions via complete focus and attention. Here are my three reasons not to multitask anymore.

Step 3 — Practice mindfulness and meditate.

Intentional introspection can lead to awareness, a growth mindset, and an openness toward others. Therefore, observing our thoughts, feelings, and behaviors is vital.

Anxious thoughts, unpleasant emotions, and disturbing behaviors can adversely affect our focus and attention, leading to psychological and physiological issues if left unchecked.

Mindfulness is the practice of being present and fully engaged at the moment. One way to practice mindfulness is to focus on breathing and work mindfully.

As documented by neuroscientists, meditation is an effective way to improve focus and attention. Regular meditation can train the brain to stay present and aware, activating the prefrontal lobe and reducing the effects of the default mode network.

The amygdala, an alert system in the brain, triggers stress hormones when we feel anxious about known or unknown situations. Excessive stress and anxiety can exacerbate the amygdala, making it overactive and shutting down the neocortex.

A powerful way to calm the amygdala is intentionally using the thinking brain by observing thoughts, sensations, and behaviors without catastrophizing them. Meditation can lower the effects of the amygdala while empowering the neocortex.

From my experience, meditation has been the best tool to improve my focus and attention. Therefore, I meditate three times daily.

Step 4 — Minimize distractions and take frequent breaks to rest the body and mind.

A simple way to improve your focus is to reduce distractions around you. This can be done by turning off notifications on your phone or computer, closing unnecessary tabs, and working in a quiet environment.

External tools can help improve our focus, such as noise-canceling headphones, apps blocking distracting websites, and features to stop notifications so that we can work in a flow state.

Each time we get a notification, our attention shifts from the project to the notification. Disruptions can cause the default mode network to become overactive, making it harder to get back to the task. By minimizing distractions, we can activate our prefrontal cortex.

Studies indicate frequent breaks can improve focus and attention by allowing the brain to rest and recharge.

Step 5— Use priority management rather than traditional time management.

Old time management techniques like creating extensive to-do lists do not work. Time management is a misnomer as we cannot manage time. However, we can control our priorities by using our time wisely.

You can schedule your activities based on your priorities. Then you can create alarms to remind you of specific actions.

Setting realistic, measurable, and time-bound goals can improve focus and attention by providing a clear target with purpose. Breaking larger goals into smaller and more manageable tasks with deadlines can prevent overwhelming and burnout.

Step 6— Create a bespoke mental gym.

I left this to the end for sustainable focus and attention. Our cognitive abilities comprise three functions: thinking, learning, and remembering, which require focus and attention. The effectiveness of mental aptitudes determines our cognitive health and performance.

As the brain is a biological entity, its abilities decline with chronological age, primarily if not used regularly. Therefore, older people experience neurodegenerative disorders such as dementia more than younger ones.

As aging is inevitable, we need to create cognitive reserves, as this concept can be valuable to remain mentally functional as we age and when we face mental decline or cognitive impairment.

From a biological angle, we should focus on neurogenesis, referring to the growth and maintenance of the brain components via BDNF. We now know that our brain cells and connections can grow at any age.

From a psychological angle, the emphasis is on metacognition which refers to knowing our cognitive abilities, such as thinking about thinking and learning how to learn.

To support biological and psychological growth (brain and mind), I developed a system that worked well for me. You might check it and get ideas on creating a mind gym for your needs and goals.

Summary and Conclusions

Focus and sustained attention are complex processes involving various brain parts. The prefrontal cortex is a crucial region responsible for executive functions that interact with other brain areas to direct our focus and attention to relevant stimuli and filter out distractions.

Focus and attention are related but slightly different. Focus is concentrating on a specific task or object while filtering out environmental distractions. Attention involves selectively focusing on a specific aspect of the environment while suppressing other sensory inputs.

Balancing neurotransmitters like dopamine, norepinephrine, serotonin, and acetylcholine is essential for focus, attention, and metacognition.

Not only for creativity and productivity but focus and attention skills are also critical for survival. For example, a lack of focus and attention can be dangerous for distracted driving or walking.

This story has three takeaway points. First, it is possible to improve focus and attention with these steps. Then, get a second opinion if you or your loved ones are misdiagnosed with ADD. And obtain professional support for underlying health conditions.

Thank you for reading my perspectives. I wish you a healthy and happy life.

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Disclaimer: My posts do not include professional or health advice. I only document my reviews, observations, experience, and perspectives to provide information and create awareness.

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