Do you ever feel like your attention span is getting shorter and shorter each day? Like your mind is getting pulled in all directions all at the same time?
Whether you are an aspiring professional who desperately needs to improve your focus at work, someone who loves to read, or an ambitious creative with a hunger for knowledge, learning how to improve your concentration in a world full of noise can become a sharp competetive edge to your game.
Meditation – A Proven Technique to Boost Your Concentration
According to a recent study published in the journal Psychological Science, intensive meditation can greatly improve your focus and attention, even during the dullest and most boring of tasks.
The participants who meditated were able to pinpoint and remember visual cues much better than the other group who did not practice meditation.
If you want to increase your focus and boost your concentration naturally, there is no better way than meditation. When it comes to improving your reading skills, meditation is also an amazing way to enhance your short and long term term memory as well as your ability to process new information.
If you meditate consistently you will also notice your increased ability to stay focused for longer periods of time.
10 minutes twice per day is a great way to start practicing meditation — try first thing in the morning, and right before getting into bed.
Here are a few techniques that can be used to sharpen your focus:
Tratak Meditation
Also known as the “steady gaze” or “object meditation”, tratak meditation enables you to unlock that peaceful silence hidden deep beneath your thoughts. This powerful technique involves fixing your gaze on a single object or on any other fixed point in the room (traditionally a lit candle). This object can be a plant, a buddha, a picture, or anything that will hold your focus.
It is believed that by steadily focusing on a point in space, your eyes become a channel of communication between your mind and soul. The peace hidden deep inside of you is transferred through your mind making it much easier for your to concentrate.
This is a great technique to finish off your day right before getting a deep and rejuvinating sleep. If you do this often, you will also notice a more focused energy and concentrated mental state when you get out of bed the next morning.
Start by getting comfortable sitting up with your back straight. Take a few deep breaths before fixing your gaze on the oject for atleast 10 minutes.
Mindfulness Meditation
To be mindful is to focus on the details of the moment without the need to judge or analyse. By tuning into your moment, you are getting into the ideal mental state to think clearly, calmly, creatively, and focused — you are setting your mind up for success.
This practice enables you to clear your mind of unnecessary thoughts and remind you of what’s real and what’s happening in the present state.
Some of the benefits of mindfulness meditation include an increased level of focus, sharper problem-solving skills and a relaxed mind-set.
Start by paying attention to the details of your surroundings and immediate environment, including your thoughts, feelings, sensations, and emotions.
This is a meditation pratice that you can carry through your entire day, and if you try to develop your ability to be mindful in your daily life, you will certainly notice some intense benefits manifesting throughout various aspects of your life, including your ability to read or work effectively for much longer periods of time.
Gamma Meditation
Gamma mediation is a powerful audio experience that enables you to raise the energy of your mind and boost the quality of your focus, awareness, creativity, and flow. Gamma brainwaves are a naturally occurring pattern that is characterized by an extremely high level of concentration, spontaneous creative thought, motivation, and a vivid experience of the present moment.
Gamma meditation is one of the most effective ways to improve the performance of your mind and boost your concentration on a daily basis.