Our brain is a true miracle: feelings, emotions and thoughts are coordinated every second and countless pieces of information are absorbed and processed simultaneously. But sometimes it feels as if the brain is not quite as focussed as we would like it to be. As a result, we get distracted very quickly and our thoughts are everywhere but on the essentials. This can quickly become a problem, especially at work. This article is about what concentration means exactly, what it is important for and what we can do to increase our focus and concentration in the long term.
Inhaltsverzeichnis
Concentration and focus - why is that important?
Concentration and focus are two terms that we encounter every day. Whether at work, during a conversation or in many other everyday activities - we are always focussed and concentrated on something. Every action, thought or speech requires some form of concentration - whether consciously or unconsciously. Concentration and focus are important companions in our lives, without which we would not be able to achieve even the smallest of goals. But what exactly is concentration and what does it mean? In a psychological context, "concentration is the ability to intentionally direct actions and control their execution." The definition also states that "concentration is, on the one hand, a state that is characterised by an abundance of (environmental, organismic, cognitive (cognition), emotional (emotions), motivational (motivation) and psychological factors. (emotions), motivational (motivation), social) conditions and, on the other hand, the personality trait of concentration." 1
Gloria Mark, an American psychologist, reports in her studies that people can only spend an average of 47 seconds in front of a screen before they become distracted. It also takes up to 25 minutes before we can fully focus on a task again. She also believes that the digital landscape has caused us to lose focus, among other things. We are constantly busy checking our emails or social networks. 2 In the long run, this distraction can be harmful and hinder our mental concentration flow.
We need concentration and focus in order to master everyday challenges and be successful in life. Focus can be seen as our drive that motivates us to make certain decisions and take certain paths in life. However, concentration and focus also play a central role in our mental health. According to studies, mindfulness (the focus on the here and now) can help to reduce anxiety and depression, lower blood pressure, optimise sleep quality and deal better with stress. Mindfulness can be particularly supportive for depression, as it helps to break through negative thoughts. 3
It should also be noted that a lack of focus can quickly impair our intrinsic motivation. Intrinsic motivation describes acting for reasons such as fun or enjoyment of the activity or challenge, without external factors such as a reward being associated with it. This means that a lack of concentration and focus can cause us to lose interest in realising our goals and our New Year's resolutions, as well as long-term plans, are doomed to failure.
Concentration difficulties and causes
It is becoming increasingly common for people to have difficulty concentrating. There can be several reasons for this - both individual, such as stress, and external factors, such as constant noise and a noisy environment. Other causes of concentration problems can include the following:
- Lack of sleep
- Nutrient deficiency
- Lack of exercise
- Stress
- Medical problems such as ADHD
- Too much media consumption
- Multitasking
- Inner restlessness and anxiety disorders
- Hormonal changes
- Dehydration
- Medication side effects
Tips for more concentration and focus in everyday life
Most of the problems that prevent us from concentrating optimally are of our own making - be it excessive consumption of social media, external distractions or lack of sleep. We therefore have a considerable influence on our concentration and focus. This realisation enables us to change our habits by applying the following tips in order to increase our ability to concentrate and focus.
-
Identification of the interference factor:
Primarily, it is important to crystallise your personal disruptive factor. There can also be several disruptive factors that hinder your flow of concentration. Examples include media overload, too many distracting stimuli, stressful situations, disorganisation, mental stress, social environment, pressure in everyday life, excessive demands on yourself, physical and mental complaints or a lack of routines in everyday life. By identifying your personal disruptive factors, you can identify opportunities for improvement and rebuild your ability to concentrate.
-
Good sleep hygiene:
Sufficient sleep and good quality sleep help your brain to regenerate. This allows you to concentrate better. A recent study found that both too little and too much sleep are associated with poorer cognitive performance. However, the ideal length of sleep ensures optimal cognitive performance. The perfect length of sleep must be considered on an individual basis. Sleep deprivation can also lead to reduced memory performance and a shortened attention span and processing speed. 4 It is therefore important to take care of your sleep quality and ensure you get enough sleep. One solution to this could be to take 5-HTP. The body needs 5-HTP for the production of serotonin. Serotonin is a neurotransmitter that is converted into melatonin. Melatonin regulates the sleep-wake rhythm. You can read about how 5- HTP influences sleep in our blog post sleep more restfully with 5-HTP There you will also find some studies that shed light on the connection between sleep and 5-HTP.
-
Brain training:
Mental performance can be significantly improved with short but effective daily brain training sessions. This includes systematic exercises and games aimed at improving attention and concentration. There are numerous apps and software that support this approach. Examples of popular games include Sudoku, memory, crossword puzzles, chess, brainteasers and mental arithmetic. Brain training can be optimally integrated into everyday life and can be carried out from time to time between important activities.
-
Concentration exercises:
Concentration exercises aim to improve attention and focus. These exercises are practice-orientated and include breathing techniques, physical exercises, mindfulness training and balance exercises. With regular practice, you will notice that your attention span is increased in the long term.
-
Mindfulness and meditation:
Mindfulness and meditation are two practices that harmonise perfectly when combined. Mindfulness can help to increase alertness, as focussing on the here and now is a suitable exercise for introspection and achieving physical and mental calm. Just a few minutes a day are enough to do these exercises. All you need to do is go to your favourite environment, close your eyes and take deep breaths. Be aware of your surroundings and focus on your posture, your thoughts and your mind. You can also use various breathing techniques such as the Wim Hof method.
-
Take time for yourself:
What could be better than withdrawing from the hustle and bustle and enjoying some time to yourself? Take the time you need to get things done, meditate, sleep, exercise or do whatever makes you happy. This will help you get to know yourself better and realise what your goals in life are and what paths you can take to achieve them. A positive side effect: taking the necessary time for yourself can also help to reduce stress.
-
Regular exercise and nutrition plan:
Daily exercise sessions and a balanced diet with sufficient nutrients are the key to physical and mental functioning. Exercise helps to improve blood flow to the body and brain. This improves oxygen supply and the ability to concentrate. One study found that physically inactive people are more likely to suffer from cognitive decline (memory loss and confusion) than active people. 5 Therefore, make sure you integrate enough exercise into your daily routine and draw up a nutrition plan so that you can better track your balanced diet and support it in the long term.
-
To-do lists:
Daily to-do lists can help you organise your day efficiently. To do this, you can adapt your tasks individually to your concentration phases and thus achieve full concentration. If you can concentrate more intensively and for longer in the morning, then complete the more complex tasks at this time of day. You can postpone the easier tasks, which can also be completed more quickly, to the afternoon. This will teach you to work on an activity in a structured and focussed way without being distracted by other to-dos.
-
Time management:
Time management is an important factor that helps us to significantly increase our concentration and focus. This involves prioritising important tasks and splitting larger tasks into several stages to avoid overload and pressure. Effective rest breaks between tasks leave a little space for the brain to breathe and recover. In this way, we can set realistic goals and focus fully on them.
-
Record milestones:
Dividing a large goal into smaller tasks has a less overwhelming effect on the brain. This allows you to focus entirely on the smaller steps that lead to your goal. In addition, even the smallest successes have a motivating effect and simplify the path to the desired goal. The milestones also provide information about the current status and avoid distractions to other details, which in turn increases concentration and focus.
-
Moodboards:
Moodboards are a visualised representation of goals. They can be customised - whether through pictures, quotes, symbols, digitally or on paper. Mood boards help you to focus on your goals and make your own vision tangible. It is a creative method for having a clear idea of your own goals and achieving them step by step.
-
Motivational strategies:
There are numerous motivational strategies that can help improve concentration and focus. You can create your own motivational strategies and use those that really help you. A few examples include setting clear and realistic goals, rewards for reaching your milestones, positive affirmations, self-reflection, meditation, autogenic training, mindfulness and stress management.
-
Fixed routines:
Scheduling routines helps you to approach the day in a more structured and planned way. Due to the fixed planning and distribution of tasks, the brain can predict what is coming up next. Among other things, this also reduces stress, as it suggests to the brain that no appointments or tasks will be forgotten and that there will be no unforeseeable bottlenecks. This promotes mental clarity and full focus on individual tasks.
-
Group therapies:
Socialising with other people can often help to overcome emotional blocks and boost self-confidence. Inner blocks are often the reason why the brain cannot focus on certain things. This inhibits concentration and has a negative effect on your performance in every respect. In addition, social meetings can often increase motivation and reduce stress, which in turn has a positive effect on memory performance and concentration.
In addition to the many strategies that can improve concentration and focus, there are also dietary supplements that can support this due to their nutrients and herbal ingredients.
Concentration-promoting nutrients
-
N°4 FOCUS:
This product was developed to boost your concentration and alertness. N°4 FOCUS is enriched with green tea extract, which contains polyphenols and theanine. Overall, green tea is known for its focussing properties. Theanine is perceived as calming and is considered to promote concentration. Polyphenols are secondary plant substances that have antioxidant properties. Lion´s Mane According to a study, the vital mushroom Lion´s Mane has proven to be effective in improving cognitive performance. The results of the study showed that taking Lion´s Mane improved the speed of performance and reduced subjective stress in young adults. 6
CDP- Choline and L-thyrosine CDP-Choline (citicoline) play a central role in brain metabolism. It is known to increase mental performance and alertness. L-thyrosine, on the other hand, is an amino acid that is required by the body for the production of neurotransmitters such as adrenaline. L-thyrosine is also said to improve concentration and focus.
Ginseng, Guarana and Ginkgo Biloba extracts:
Ginseng, guarana and ginkgo are plant extracts that have been traditionally used for centuries to support concentration. A subgroup meta-analysis showed that guarana resulted in faster reaction time performance compared to a palcebo. 7
Vitamin B6, B12 and biotin: These B vitamins contribute to normal energy metabolism, promote the function of a normal nervous system and are therefore essential for supporting mental performance and cognitive functions.
Zinc: Zinc also contributes to the maintenance of normal cognitive function. In a study conducted on overweight women, one group received 30 mg of zinc and the other a placebo. The results showed that women in the zinc group performed better on cognitive tests (such as the Mini-Mental State Test and the Stroop Test) than the placebo group. 8
Anzeige
-
Siberian Ginseng capsules:
Siberian Ginseng is a plant species and is an adaptogen. Adaptogens have been used since ancient times to alleviate stress, strengthen the immune system, counteract inflammation and promote concentration. One study investigated whether Siberian Ginseng can help people with chronic fatigue. It is important to note that the participants had been suffering from severe fatigue for at least 6 months. The participants were divided into two groups, with one group receiving Siberian ginseng and the other group receiving the placebo. It was observed that after two months, the Siberian ginseng was more effective than the placebo in the participants who suffered less from fatigue. It was also helpful, but less clear, in participants who had suffered from fatigue for more than 5 years. 9 By reducing tiredness and fatigue, the ability to concentrate and attention span are increased.
Conclusion
In conclusion, there are many reasons why we can lose our concentration and mental focus. It is important to identify the trigger so that these disruptive factors can be circumvented or avoided. Daily exercise sessions, brain jogging and a balanced diet as well as supporting nutritional supplements will help you regain your mental strength.
Sources:
- Definition: Konzentration ist die Fähigkeit, über einen bestimmten Zeitraum gezielt Informationen zu verarbeiten und eine Aufgabe mit bewusster Anstrengung zu verfolgen. (Dorsch, 2024)
-
Mark, G. (2023). Regaining focus in a world of digital distractions. University of California, Irvine. https://www.informatics.uci.edu/regaining-focus-in-a-world-of-digital-distractions/
-
National Institutes of Health. (2021, June). Mindfulness and your health. NIH News in Health. https://newsinhealth.nih.gov/2021/06/mindfulness-your-health
-
Krystal, A. D., Prather, A. A., & Ashbrook, L. H. (2019). The assessment and management of insomnia: An update. Sleep, 42(3), zsz010. https://doi.org/10.1093/sleep/zsz010
- Omura JD, Brown DR, McGuire LC, Taylor CA, Fulton JE, Carlson SA. Cross-sectional association between physical activity level and subjective cognitive decline among US adults aged ≥45 years, 2015.
- Docherty, S., Doughty, F. L., & Smith, E. F. (2023). The Acute and Chronic Effects of Lion’s Mane Mushroom Supplementation on Cognitive Function, Stress and Mood in Young Adults: A Double-Blind, Parallel Groups, Pilot Study. Nutrients, 15(22), 4842.
-
Hack B, Penna EM, Talik T, Chandrashekhar R, Millard-Stafford M. Effect of Guarana (Paullinia cupana) on Cognitive Performance: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Nutrients. 2023 Jan 14;15(2):434. doi: 10.3390/nu15020434. PMID: 36678305; PMCID: PMC9865053.
- de Vargas, L. d. S., Jantsch, J., Fontoura, J. R., Dorneles, G. P., Peres, A., & Guedes, R. P. (2023). Effects of Zinc Supplementation on Inflammatory and Cognitive Parameters in Middle-Aged Women with Overweight or Obesity. Nutrients, 15(20), 4396.
- HARTZ, A. J., BENTLER, S., NOYES, R., HOEHNS, J., LOGEMANN, C., SINIFT, S. KAUTZMAN, H. (2004). Randomized controlled trial of Siberian ginseng for chronic fatigue. Psychological Medicine, 34(1), 51–61. doi:10.1017/S0033291703008791
DE-ÖKO-006
