Before we delve deep into the topic, let me narrate a story to
you from the life of Swami Vivekananda to give you an idea of the power
of concentration.
Once, in America, Swami Vivekananda was watching
some boys. They were standing on a bridge trying to shoot at egg-shells
that were floating on the river. The egg-shells bobbed up and down. The
boys could not hit any of them. They fired the gun many times, but
always missed the target! They noticed that Swami Vivekananda was
watching them. So they called out to him: 'Well, you are watching us. Do
you think you can do better?'
Swami Vivekananda smiled and said: 'I will try.'
Then the boys said: 'It's not so easy as you think!'
Swami
Vivekananda took the gun and aimed at the egg-shells. He stood very
still for a few minutes. Then he fired the gun. He fired twelve times,
and every time he hit an egg-shell! The boys were very surprised. How
could any man shoot egg-shells like that? They thought. They said to
Swami Vivekananda: 'Well, Mister, how did you do it? You must be a
practiced hand.'
Swami Vivekananda laughed and assured them he had never handled a gun before.
'Whatever
you are doing,' he explained, 'the secret of success lies in the power
of concentration. Put your whole mind to it. If you are shooting, your
mind should be only on the target. Then you will never miss. If you are
learning your lessons, think only of the lesson. In my country boys are
taught to do this.'
The power of concentration is the only key to the treasure house of knowledge.
How to Improve Your Concentration
1. Understand what concentration is: "Concentration is taking your mind
off many things and putting it on one thing at a time."
2. Watch other people concentrating.
Go see a good action movie. In the middle of it, look around at the
people in the theater. What are they doing? They are absolutely still,
eyes barely blinking, and their breath is slower. It would take a really
major distraction to break their attention stream. These physical signs
may give you a hint about ways to increase your own concentration
abilities.
3. Avoid constant sensory input. Multi-tasking
(trying to do more than one thing at a time), loud noises, and visual
stimulation (such as from a T.V.) make concentration much more
difficult, and being around them or doing them too much can put you into
a habit of non-attention which can be hard to break.
4. Make it a point to put your full concentration on whatever you are doing. Don't let anything distract you. It really helps to be in a quiet place, but you can learn to block outside noise if necessary.
5. Stay calm.
Deep concentration is a matter of increasing or directing your
life-force or conscious, cosmic energy. The more of this kind of energy
you have, the better. Scattered energy doesn't help. It must be calm,
focused energy. Learn to be calmly concentrated and be concentratedly
calm.
6. Learn techniques to increase and control your energy.
One such technique is Paramhansa Yogananda's Energization Exercises.
Controlling your energy is an important first step towards the ability
to concentrate deeply.
7. Take breaks. Go outside and
breathe deeply or take a brisk walk. Make yourself do this often and
you'll be able to return to your task recharged and ready to focus more
creatively.
8. Learn to meditate. Meditation is the most
powerful of all concentration enhancement techniques. Learn a few simple
meditation techniques and practice them at least five minutes daily.
9. While meditating, watch your breath - don't control it in any way, just observe.
This teaches you to focus your mind on one thing at a time. As you
observe your breath, it will slow down, along with your mind (this is a
scientifically well-documented), and you move into a dynamic, peaceful
(but not sleepy) state of being. Your mind will become recharged and
creatively receptive.
10. Take rest. The biggest factor
affecting concentration is rest and this has been proved by research.
Concentration requires your mind to be calm. But your mind will be
scattered if you are not well rested. Make sure that you get the right
amount of sleep at the right time. Also have regular sleep time, and
this can be the key step for concentrating.
11. Choose a place of your choice for concentration.
Obviously some places are better than others. School libraries, study
lounges and private rooms are the best. Above all, the place that you
choose should not be distracting. Try to stay away from other people if
you want to concentrate on your work.
12. If you want to master the arts of concentration, develop a controlled and balanced diet.
Overeating creates a huge load of digestion and can make you feel
uncomfortable and sleepy. Eating light and healthy meals can help you
maximize your ability to concentrate. As Thomas Jefferson said, we
rarely regret eating too little. It's likely you'll find that you need
less food to satisfy yourself than you think.
13. Exercise frequently.
The ability to concentrate depends a lot upon our physical well-being.
If we are tired, unhealthy and afflicted by numerous minor ailments,
concentration will be more difficult. Of course, concentration is still
possible, but it is just more difficult.
14. Help improve the flow of oxygen to the brain.
Blood is the main vehicle of oxygen in our bodies. But blood gets
pooled in the lower half of our bodies as a result of gravity, and
doesn't push as much oxygen to the brain, where it helps improve
concentration. In order to help oxygenate the brain, get up and take a
walk every so often to get the blood pumping.
15. Practice doing one thing at a time, and doing it to completion.
If you jump all over the place and start a new project before you've
finished the last one, you're telling your brain that it's okay to
switch from one subject to another. If you really want to improve your
concentration, you'll start trying to convince your brain to finish one
task before you move onto the next one.
16. Do work at a desk, not your bed.
Your bed is where you sleep; your desk is where you work and
concentrate. Your mind makes these sorts or associations subconsciously,
which means that you're sending a "sleep" signal to your mind if you're
trying to work on your bed. This is counterproductive because you're
actually asking your brain to do two things at once (concentrate and
sleep). Instead, ask your brain to either concentrate or sleep by
choosing your workstation carefully.
17. Try the five-more rule.
The five-more rule is simple. Whenever you feel like quitting or losing
concentration, tell yourself to do five more of whatever you were
doing. If it's math problems, do five more problems. If it's reading, do
five more pages. If it's concentrating, do five more minutes. Find the
energy deep within to do five more of whatever you were you doing.
18. Try the Keywords Technique.
In this simple technique, the only thing you have to do is to find the
right keyword on what you are studying or doing and whenever you lose
concentration or feel distracted or your mind wanders to something else,
start saying that keyword repeatedly in your mind until you come back
to the topic at hand. The keyword in this technique is not a single,
fixed word but keeps changing according to your study or work. There are
no rules to select the keyword and whichever word the person feels that
it will bring back his concentration can be used as a keyword.
Bear in mind, concentration is that powerful tool which can win you all
your dreams provided you build it strong and use it right!
