As someone with a short attention span, I understand the woes of attempting to remain focused on my school work. Sometimes, I write one sentence and subconsciously search for a distraction. Today, I’ll tell you some tricks I’ve learned over the years that have helped me overcome this obstacle.
Step away from the phone (unless you are using it to study). I know this one may seem obvious, but it really does make a difference. If it is a distraction, try putting your cell in a different corner of the room, put on “Do Not Disturb” or “Downtime” (a feature which disables your apps for a certain amount of time) or better yet, turn it off completely. When you take away your main distraction everything becomes easier. Of course, if you are using your phone or laptop to study, keep your application full screen and avoid the temptation to do something else.
Work in intervals. Don’t try to study for hours and hours straight. You will definitely not be able to maintain focus, and will end up worse off. Try working in 20-25 minute intervals, and allow yourself a break after the interval is done. This also will most likely prevent the desire to procrastinate or cram last minute. Minute School is designed with this purpose in mind, so you can try out this technique while on our platform.
Schedule rewards for yourself. When you finish your work, you get to see a friend, get a snack, or maybe watch your favourite TV show. You’ll work much harder towards completion when you have a reward in mind.
These are just some techniques to help with your productivity. Try some out, and if they don’t work, create some of your own. If you already have something that works for you, please share in the comments. You may help a fellow student in the process.