21 Proven Ways To Stay Focused Every Day

21 Proven Ways to Stay

Focused Every Day

A simple guide to help you accomplish more in less time.
(And with less stress.)
Visit MindfulAmbition.net for more

The Setup
Performing at your best—in work, health, and relationships—requires focus
and presence.
But in our hyper-connected world, it’s never been easier to get distracted.
Most people live their lives in a state of Continuous Partial Attention (CPA).
This limits your effectiveness in all areas, meaning you’ll accomplish less, and
feel less satisfied with your results.
Cultivating deep focus and maintaining powerful presence is a skill. By

practicing the disciplines in this guide, you’ll build this skill in no time.
Developing and maintaining focus is not just one thing. Which is why the
disciplines below are split into 6 key areas. Ready to dive in? Let’s do this!
I: Set the Conditions for Focus

1: Get your sleep. Every amazing day starts the night before with a full
night’s rest. Without sleep, staying focused is an uphill battle.
2: Stay hydrated. Even a slight amount of dehydration can impair your

performance. Keep a steady supply of clean water on hand!
3: Fuel your body well. Choose to eat foods that sharpen your state of mind.
(Sugar is the #1 brain-fog creator, so eliminate it altogether.)
4: Move your body. When your physiology is in order, everything else works
better. Engage your body to center your mind. Make daily movement (in
whatever way you enjoy most) a part of your life.

5: Breathe deeply, through your nose. You can go for days without food or
water, but only minutes without oxygen. To regulate your body and get your
mind in a peak state, breathe in through your nose, and deeply into your
diaphragm. Exhale completely through the nose.
6: Minimize distractions. Do whatever you can to eliminate distractions.

Especially those from your devices. (For more on this topic, check out this
article: How to Minimize Distractions and Be More Productive.)
II: Choose Where to Place Your Focus

7: Ask yourself “What’s important now?” There are a million things you
could do. But in every moment, there’s only one most important thing to do.
Decide what that is. Then write it down. This will be your place of focus.
III: Get In-Action

8: Set a timer. When it’s time to focus, set a timer for 25 minutes. This will be
your focused work time. As soon as the timer starts, get in-action. Gametime!
9: Solotask. As the saying goes: "Chase two rabbits, and you’ll catch none."
Multitasking is a myth. For the remainder of your timer, direct your attention
to one task, and one task only.
10: Be creative before you’re reactive. Do your most important creative

work each day before you read the news, check emails, or scan social media.
This way, you bring uncluttered attention to your most important work.

11: Cultivate urgency. You only need to stay focused on this task for the
duration of your timer. So while you’re focusing, focus! This moment is all you
have, so bring your A-game to the table.
IV: Recover Your Focus When Distracted/Interrupted

12: Use a “thought collector.” While working, you will have thoughts and
ideas that you want to investigate further. “I wonder if Dan emailed me
back?” “Where should I go for my dinner date?” “What’s the name of that one
song?” Instead of pursuing those thoughts, write them on a piece of paper.
Then, return your attention to your focus task. “It’ll only take 2 minutes” is
one of the most common lies we tell ourselves.
13: Use “Pointing and Calling” to note distractions. When you realize you’re
distracted, say this out loud: “I’m distracted by [the thing you’re distracted
by].” Do this without judgment. After all, it’s the nature of the mind to
wander. It’s inevitable that you’ll get distracted and interrupted while trying
to focus. Pointing and Calling may feel silly, but it’s a powerful way to bring
awareness to your distracted state. And once you’re aware, you can return to
focus.
14: Celebrate the turnarounds. It’s inevitable that you will be distracted
while trying to focus. Instead of getting upset about distractions, use your
awareness of them to celebrate your opportunity to re-focus. Celebrate the
turnarounds. Get great at noticing distractions. And love the process of
returning back to focus.

V: Sustain Focus Over Time

15: Create cycles of focus and recovery. After your timer goes off, take a
5-minute recovery break. On this break, get out of your head and into your
body. Move/dance/stretch/walk, drink water, use the bathroom, or get some
sun on your skin. Don’t--I repeat don’t (!!)--check your notifications, emails,
or social media. Like an athlete resting between sets, oscillating between
activity and rest maximizes your effectiveness over time. Checking your
devices while eliminates your opportunity to recover by keeping your mind
active. (This is unwise. Like a sprinter doing squats in-between their sprints.)
16: Rest before you’re tired. If you’ve “hit a wall,” it’s already too late.
Resting before you’re tired keeps you in a peak-performance state. Taking a
recovery break when the timer goes off may mean you spend less time on
your task. But the time you do spend will be higher quality.
17: Track your time. After each timer block of focus, make a tally mark next
to the task on your sheet. This way, you have a clear way to understand
where you’ve put your attention in the day.
VI: Set Your Future Self Up For Success

18: Clarify tomorrow’s MIT's at the end of each day. When you end each
day, ask yourself: “What are the three most important things I want to
accomplish tomorrow?” Make a note of them. This way, you know where to
start tomorrow.
19: Set the stage for tomorrow’s successes. After clarifying tomorrow’s
MIT’s, gather whatever you’ll need to take action on those tasks. Close

unnecessary browser windows. Download the necessary documents. Put

your notebook on the desk. Do whatever is needed to set the stage, so
tomorrow you can get in-action with minimal friction.
20: Celebrate your wins. Where did you stay focused and intentional in the
day? Note those wins in your journal with a #thatslikeme. Because it IS like
you to stay focused and crush it! Then, do it again.
21: Note your opportunities to grow. Where were you distracted and
impulsive during the day? Note these as amazing opportunitiy areas. You
now know what to do differently to level-up. Then, do that.
I hope this guide was helpful. Let me know if you have any questions. You can
reach me at p
atrick@mindfulambition.net, or on Instagram @
MindfulAmbition.
Here’s to you, rocking it!
Patrick

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