Scrolling on your phone in front of a movie or spending hours on social media before falling asleep… if these are the kind of bad habits you want to get rid of, then you can regain control of your concentration by trying out activities that help foster a mental state of total immersion.
Known as “flow“, conceived by Hungarian-American psychologist Mihály Csíkszentmihályi, this is a mental state in which your attention is completely focused on an activity, making you forget the passage of time. Conversely, the same kind of altered perception of time can be a factor in the feeling of boredom.
In an age when attention spans are seriously being put to the test, motivation, procrastination and concentration issues are omnipresent. But you can retrain your brain to focus by spending time getting absorbed in certain everyday activities.
Read
It may be no surprise that reading engages the mind profoundly, since it inspires people to feel, imagine and create. According to a 2023 study from Newcastle University in the UK, reading reduces stress levels by 68%, compared with 61% for listening to music, 42% for walking, and 21% for playing video games.
“Researchers believe that the concentration required for reading has a physiological effect on the brain,” the paper explains. “As the stress hormones dissipate, the fear centre of the brain becomes less active and the rationalisation areas of the brain take over. This shift in the brain makes you feel calmer and more in control.”
Exercise
Exercise is essential for physical wellbeing, but it also promotes mental wellness. Playing sport or working out requires you to push your limits, and constantly encourages you to achieve new levels of performance.
This gradual progression, in which all your sensory acuity, skills and emotions come together, helps foster a state of optimal concentration: you’re “in the zone”. And the feeling of accomplishment after great effort can become addictive for some sportspeople and athletes.
A remedy for depression, as stated in a study published in 2021 by Harvard Medical School, exercise is a great way to combat the attention-hungry culture cultivated by social networks.
Meditate
Achieving flow through meditation is different from that of the first two activities. With reading and exercise, you become immersed in your task with a goal in sight; the end of a chapter or a mile marker to reach. With meditation, your body and mind find a new anchoring, a brief moment of letting go that disconnects you.
A study published last year in the journal Learning and Individual Differences reports that practising mindfulness-based activities like meditation can significantly reduce procrastination, notably through attention control, emotional management and self-awareness.
With these three activities, your attention is no longer a commodity but a productivity tool. Whether by reading, exercising or meditating, you can cultivate good habits and familiarise yourself with the state of flow, which you can then harness to help you work or study more efficiently.