You might have heard that concentration is a natural gift: you’re either one of those people who can read a whole novel in a day or you belong to the category of those who check what’s outside the window every five seconds to spot the slightest variation in the same cloud. Focus is a big part of what it takes to become a speed reader. If you can learn to focus better, you’ll not only read faster, but you’ll do so with better comprehension.
Learning to focus better will also help you become more productive in your professional or academic career. However, concentration is a skill you can learn with a little practice rather than one you’re born with. There are steps you can take and strategies you can develop to make sure you maximize your time and get your work done without much distraction.
Learning how to focus on reading is super important. It doesn’t matter what your reading material is: textbooks, online articles, Kindle, or a novel. If you are having trouble focusing, everything feels like eternal punishment. Being unable to focus makes for miserable, slow, shallow reading. By learning how to focus on reading, you will read more, do it faster, and take in the words. Not only is it possible to improve focus – you can work on it and build up strength, just like a muscle.
Find a quiet place:
The ideal place will vary from person to person: if the presence of other people distracts you, avoid libraries and common areas in your house. If noise is what bothers you most, the library could instead be the perfect environment for you. Either, if you’ve chosen a space thinking that it could work and then find yourself distracted by something in it, get away and move into one without this distraction. Forcing yourself to ignore it while trying to read or study will only keep your concentration busy with something other than the task at hand.
Listen to some music if it helps:
The effect of background noise on our concentration is very subjective: you might work best in total silence or find music helpful in shutting out actual as well as mental distraction. Listen to different genres of music and see which one helps you concentrate the most. Creating a sound environment that helps your concentration doesn’t necessarily involve music. You might prefer the background noise of a student lounge or coffee shop.
Return to the same space any time you need to concentrate:
Developing a habit of reading or working in the same place has its psychological benefits. When you go there, your mind will associate the environment with the activity you perform in it (for example, reading) and get down to work faster. Once you develop this habit, you’ll no longer have to make an effort to start concentrating. By association, your mind will automatically read the physical transition into such space (a study room) as a mental transition into concentration time.
Practice Meditation:
Sources of anxiety and distraction are never far away. So, learning to clear your mind won’t just make you happier. It’ll make you a better reader. A really simple way to do that is meditation as well. Sit in a comfortable, quiet space, and try to empty your mind. Practice letting thoughts come to your attention and pass through. Learn to hold your focus.
This skill won’t just get your brain ready to concentrate on reading. It will also help you block out distracting thoughts while you read.