How to focus better: simple steps for a distracted day

How to focus better: step by step

You do not need to do all of these every day. Try them in order on one task and keep the ones that work for you.

1. 1Pick one task and its next physical step. Not 'finish the project', but 'open the document and write the first heading'. A step you can see yourself doing is easier to stay with.
2. 2Clear the space. Close extra tabs and programs, and put away anything not needed for this task. Fewer things in view means fewer things to drift towards.
3. 3Put your phone out of reach. Another room is best. If you cannot do that, turn it face down and switch off notifications for now.
4. 4Set a short timer. Choose a length you can manage, such as 15 or 25 minutes, and tell yourself you only have to stay with the task until it rings. Then you can stop or carry on.
5. 5Park stray thoughts on paper. Keep a sheet beside you. When a worry or an errand pops up, write it down in a few words and go back to the task. The brain dump template is made for this.
6. 6Take a short break when the timer ends. Stand up, stretch, get water, look out of a window. Leave your phone alone, or the break will swallow the next session.
7. 7Stop at a clear point. End each session with a note of what you will do next. When you come back, the first step is already waiting for you.

To plan your day around a few focus blocks, use the daily planner. To empty your head before you begin, use the brain dump.

Tips to focus when working from home

Home has its own pulls: the washing, the fridge, the sofa. A few things that can help:

• Make one spot your work spot, even if it is the end of the kitchen table. Sitting there can become a cue that it is time to begin.
• Set a start and a finish time, and tell the people you live with when you are not to be interrupted.
• Do a short, fixed start ritual: make a drink, open the first task, start the timer.
• Keep a list of household jobs beside you and promise yourself a time to do them, such as lunch. Then they stop nagging.
• Get out of the house at least once. A walk at lunch gives your day an edge.
• Plan your hardest task for the part of the day when your mind is clearest, and leave email for the flat patches. The daily planner template has space for this.

How to focus when you're tired or stressed

Some days your head is not up to a long stretch of deep work. Pushing harder may not help. Try these instead:

• Shrink the session. Ten minutes on one small step still counts.
• Choose the task that needs the least thinking. Save the hard one for a clearer day.
• Write your worries down first. Getting them onto paper may make them easier to set aside.
• Move for a few minutes. Walk round the block or stretch before you start.
• Eat, drink some water, and open a window.
• Ask what you would tell a friend in your position. You would probably tell them to be gentler with themselves today.

If you are tired or stressed most days, that is a sign to look at your rest, not just your focus. The guide to types of rest and the guide to managing stress are places to begin.

Does multitasking hurt focus?

A 2009 study looked at this. In 2009, Eyal Ophir, Clifford Nass and Anthony Wagner published a series of experiments in the journal PNAS. They used a questionnaire to pick out people who often use several kinds of media at once and people who rarely do, then compared the two groups on tests of attention and task switching.

The heavy media multitaskers were more easily thrown off by things that were not relevant to the task, and they did worse on a test of switching between tasks. The researchers describe this as an association between heavy media multitasking and a different way of handling information. The study compared two existing groups, so it cannot tell you whether multitasking caused the difference. It does fit with a simple habit worth trying: give each task your whole attention for a short while, then switch on purpose.

When trouble focusing is more than a bad week

Days when focus will not come happen to all of us. It is worth talking to a GP if:

• poor focus has lasted a long time, not just a rough patch,
• it is getting in the way of your work, studies or relationships,
• it comes with low mood, constant worry, or loss of interest in things you used to enjoy.

A GP can talk through the possible causes with you. You do not need to be sure what is wrong before you go. Writing down a few examples of when focus has been hard can help you explain.

When to get more support

This is a self-help tool, not therapy or medical advice. If poor focus is hurting your job, your studies or how you feel about yourself, you deserve more than a page to fill in. A GP is a good first step. If you ever feel unsafe or have thoughts of harming yourself, call Samaritans on 116 123 (UK and Ireland), 988 (US), or find a line at findahelpline.com.