Set up your office optimally, work more productively and with more concentration

Do you also have this problem: you try to get your tasks done, but it doesn't work as you expect? It takes longer than planned and the result doesn't satisfy you? Your concentration wanes, you lose your focus or can't even motivate yourself to start?

Then you share this problem with millions of other people who are desperately looking for a solution.
As you already know, there are countless causes for concentration difficulties, whether physical or psychological. In every guide, you read the same clichés: "Put your phone away," "get some fresh air," "do one thing at a time," and much more.

In 2021 alone, 1.91 million people tried to increase their performance by taking over-the-counter remedies. However, this is not a sustainable solution and, in most cases, unfortunately, just an empty promise.

How to eliminate concentration difficulties?

Certainly, these clichés are not wrong. We do indeed get distracted by our phones or approach tasks without structure. However, I believe that following these simple rules is a superficial approach that simply cannot work in the long run. You fall back into old patterns after a very short time.
The art is to tackle the problem at its root and not allow these distractions in the first place.

The Subconscious

"15 millimeters of consciousness against 11 kilometers of subconscious," said Vera F. Birkenbihl in her lecture on success psychology. This vivid comparison illustrates our chances of success in actively and consciously addressing this problem. It is comparable to the decision not to look at the unpleasant food residues on the face of the person you are talking to. Even if you actively don't look, you will constantly think of nothing else.

The same applies to any intention not to be distracted from work. Try not to think about back pain when you've been sitting at the computer for hours, or not to think about wanting to lie down on the sofa behind you when you're already exhausted.

All these factors distract you enormously from your tasks, no matter how hard you try to concentrate. In addition, it is mentally more than just exhausting to consciously forgo things that you have been doing daily for decades without even thinking about them. No one considers whether they are playing with a pen, checking their messages, or letting their thoughts wander; it just happens.

If you were to rethink all your actions, you could almost lie down again immediately after getting up. This is exactly what happens as soon as you decide to break a habit.

It can only work if there is no possibility for your thoughts to wander.

Habits, Environment and Focus

 The most common reason for unfocused work is the environment. Everything in your private space has its function. The kitchen for eating, the bedroom for sleeping, the living room for relaxing or meeting friends. However, few people have their own area for doing work.

Is your study also the room where you eat, sleep, spend your free time, do private things, or relax? In all these cases, you will not be able to subconsciously adjust to the idea that your only task is to complete an important task now. Instead, you will constantly fall into the belief that there is a possibility of doing something else, less strenuous, right now. Your thoughts will wander, and your concentration will drop.

Studies show that it takes an average of 23 minutes to regain focus on the essential after an interruption. Ask yourself how often you consciously distract yourself and then consider how often it happens unconsciously. You will constantly try to concentrate and lose concentration, minute by minute.

Once you have created an area where you exclusively work, your subconscious will adjust, and many potential interruptions will be avoided. This causes a change at the core of the problem, instead of trying to solve the problem from the outside.

•  Create your own workspace

Ergonomics

Another point that is often neglected is the correct selection and arrangement of your objects. Yes, it makes a big difference whether you work on a standing stool and a height-adjustable desk or on a wooden chair and a tiny table. Quite apart from the health consequences, your concentration also suffers if you get back pain after 30 minutes. It is optimal if your chair or computer is not used for activities other than work. Make sure that your brain associates objects with the process of work, which leads to a quicker shift to concentration and focus.

Example of a simple and effective method:

In Marty Lobdell's lecture Study Less Study Smart, a very interesting method is presented that takes your attention to a new level. A study lamp.

You read that right, a lamp that is only switched on when you start working. At the slightest interruption, such as leaving the workplace, the lamp must be switched off immediately. It is also only switched on again at the beginning of the work phase. This is a psychological trick that links your subconscious to an event associated with learning, concentration, and focus.

Make sure that you sit comfortably while working or even use a standing stool to relieve your body.

Help with setting up your workspace and deciding on optimal working conditions can be found on this page under "Blog"

• Link events and objects to work