
Ask HN: How can I increase my attention span? - sauravt
Looking for exercises and practical advice to increase time spent in deep work, focussed state and techniques to increase attention span.<p>I am already trying daily meditation and pomodoro technique for specific tasks.
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tharidlynn
1.Healthy lifestyle: eat less junkie-food, exercise, and have a good night
sleep (sleeping is the most important for me). Avoid stress as much as you can
and try to live happy life instead.

2.Less news: stop watching tv and read less news. These make your brain
process less information and reduce the cognitive overloads.

3.Single goal: decide what you want to do or what skill you want to achieve.
Do not try to have multi-goal or multi-tasking while you are focusing. In
general, you want to have zero distraction so no phone, youtube, music, email.

If you feel tired after 3-4 hours, do something else to relax your brain til
you feel ready for the next session. Do not take it too serious and enjoy the
process instead. It's getting better everytime so let it be and just have a
good day!.

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adnanazadsg
One of the best techniques that I have found to be useful is reading more
long-form writings.

Its something I found myself doing less and less over the past 5 years and in
2019 made a conscious effort to change that.

Find a topic you are interested in and start reading more. Avoid short-form
writings such as tweets, or stuff like that. If you dont have a lot of free
time, start with reading articles of Medium.

Reading books are obviously better. It also helped me improve my focus and
memory because you rarely finish a book in a single sitting, so you start
getting used to remember what you read yesterday and get back into that
context.

I'd recommend setting aside at least 30 minutes each day and forming that
habit.

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atiredturte
I've been implementing a "power hour" approach, and it's been quite helpful.

Basically, I write down a task (or a few smaller tasks) to tackle during a
dedicated 1 hr. In this hour I can do nothing else.

I've found that I am forced into some kind of flow, and am forced to confront
the discomfort that can come from actually focus on things. It's not hard to
be uncomfortable for an hour a day.

I don't really know many others that do exactly this, but this has helped me
(Also, I have ADHD and focus can be an issue for me).

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Chunklight
I agree. For those with ADHD, especially on the instant release ritalin, it
can help to line a "power hour" up with important tasks, things you know
you're going to avoid when the meds wear off, or things that take a lot of
planning but make later stuff easier.

Also knocking something out early in the day can create momentum and stop
inertia.

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natmaka
My work implies long periods of desk-sitting while cutting a large problem
into small ones, then focusing on each one. This "Descartes/algorithmics FTW!"
way may sound familiar to some...

Practicing a physical and skill-based activity implying many simultaneous
urgent inputs tremendously enhances my focus and attention span. Most martial
arts are adequate.

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crazygorilla
Books have been mentioned already, maybe listening to lectures can help
because you will realize it quickly once you loose your attention. Khan
academy's lecture videos are great too.

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yssrnjm
You can try to avoid cellphone before going to bed as it really changes how
you will wake up. What I will also try in the future is more Article reading
and less Youtube for News

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lutorm
Modify your online habits? I just read "The Shallows" and it really brought
home to me how the web has altered my attention span.

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bjourne
Unplug your internet.

