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

 

Do you also have the problem: You try to complete your tasks, but it doesn't work as you expect? You need longer than planned and you are not satisfied with the result? Are you losing your concentration, are you losing 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 of concentration difficulties, be they physical or psychological. In every guide you read the same phrases: "Put away your cell phone", "Get some fresh air", "Do one thing at a time" and much more.

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

How do you get rid of concentration difficulties?

Certainly, these phrases are not wrong. We actually allow ourselves to be distracted by the cell phone or tackle tasks without structure. However, I believe that following these simple rules is a superficial approach that simply cannot work in the long term. You fall into old patterns after a very short time.
The trick is to get to the root of the problem and not allow those distractions in the first place.

The subconscious

"15 millimeters of consciousness stand against 11 kilometers of the subconscious," said Vera F. Birkenbihl in her lecture on the psychology of success. This pictorial juxtaposition illustrates our chance of success in taking active and conscious action against this problem. It is comparable to the decision not to look at the unpleasant leftovers of food on the face of the interlocutor. Even if you're not actively looking, you won't be thinking about anything else all the time.

This is exactly how it is to not let yourself be distracted from your work with any project. Try not to think about back pain when you've been sitting at the computer for hours or not thinking about laying on the sofa behind you when you're already exhausted.

All of these factors distract you enormously from your tasks, no matter how hard you try to concentrate. In addition, mentally it is more than just exhausting to consciously do without things that you have been doing every day for decades without even thinking about them. Nobody thinks about playing with their pen now, or checking their messages and wandering their thoughts, it just happens.

If you were to think about all your actions, you could lie down almost as soon as you got up. That's what happens when you commit to breaking a habit.

It can only work if there is no possibility to let your mind 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, very few have their own area to do the work.

Is your study also the room in which you eat, sleep, spend your free time, do private things or relax? In all of these cases, you won't be able to subconsciously adjust to the fact that your only job is to get something important done now. Instead, you will constantly fall into the belief that there is an opportunity to do something else, less strenuous, now. Your mind wanders and your concentration drops.

Research shows that it takes an average of 23 minutes for you to regain focus after a break. 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 again, every minute.

Once you create an area in which you work exclusively , your subconscious will adjust and many potential interruptions will be avoided. By doing this you are causing a change at the core of the problem rather than trying to solve the problem from the outside.

• Create your own workspace

ergonomics

Another point that is often neglected is the correct selection and correct 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 your brain associate objects with the process of work, resulting in a faster shift to concentration and focus.

Example of an easy and effective method:

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

That's right, a lamp that only turns on when you start work. In the event of the slightest interruption, such as leaving the workplace, the lamp must be switched off immediately. It is only switched on again at the beginning of the work phase. This is a psychological trick that hooks your subconscious to an event associated with learning, concentration, and focus.

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

You can find help with setting up your workplace and deciding on optimal working conditions on this page under "Blog"

• Link events and items to work