How to hone the focus skill?

[kyrax12]

Mainly I have trouble focusing on my studies. When ever I start to read my textbook, my mind would just wander.

 

[MagnusTheBrewer]

People learn through making associations. Try taking notes as you read or make up mnemonics.

 

[Anonemous]

Ritalin. /yes lots of college kids use it

But if you don't want to go that route. Isolate yourself from distractions (phone/internet/computers/etc).

 

[MagnusTheBrewer]

Ritalin. /yes lots of college kids use it

But if you don't want to go that route. Isolate yourself from distractions (phone/internet/computers/etc).

Don't even think of taking non recreational drugs.

 

[coldmeat]

meditation

 

[sourn]

OMFG dude you like so have adhd. You also probably have OCD, insomnia, and here's the kicker RESTLESS LEG SYNDROME! You're so gonna die!

 

[Crono]

Get off the internet, don't use a computer or have one in reach during or around study time, put your phone on silent and keep it at greater than arm's reach away, don't listen to any music. Study in a quiet environment, and if you don't have that luxury get headphones with sound isolation and use white noise or ambient music if you must.

Don't drink coffee or energy drinks if they make you jittery.

Take a small break every hour, and walk around with flash cards. Sometimes there's just too much information in textbooks chapter by chapter, so just break out the essential information you need.

Also, anytime you have to use a computer, don't multitask. That was a big problem for me and it took me a while to realize that it was messing up my focus. Having 50 tabs open, with two monitors and multiple windows, while working on different things like writing papers and listening to music or watching videos at the same time, will make you less productive even if you feel like you are doing a lot. Do exactly one thing at a time.

If you need to memorize a lot of information, do what memorization experts (those guys who have competitions) do.

 

[FleshLight]

Adderall

 

[Tiamat]

I learned real quick when I had to send university a 20k$ check every year out of my own pocket which I had to work hard for and not spend it on nice things.

 

[Murloc]

reading books/PDFs is more difficult for me than doing exercises or writing stuff. I usually cope with that by getting away from the desk where computer is, or eliminating attracting websites from the favourites' bar in my browser.

 

[Oil]

You obtain the focus skill at lvl 25

 

[chelhxi]

Set a timer and time yourself. If you normally get distracted after 15 minutes, plan to study for 10 minutes straight. After those 10 minutes you can have a little break. You'll probably find the 10 minutes go well because you had a specific time limit. Then slowly increase the time until you are used to focusing for longer periods.

 

[brianmanahan]

pop a focusing stone, duh

 

[brianmanahan]

You obtain the focus skill at lvl 25

duh, its an attribute, not a skill

 

[clamum]

Put more points into Focus when you level up, though you'll have to do that at the expense of Strength and Dexterity.

 

[Oil]

duh, its an attribute, not a skill

It's a skill (or ability) in FF

 

[brianmanahan]

Put more points into Focus when you level up, though you'll have to do that at the expense of Strength and Dexterity.

get your focus high enough that you can cast level 8 buffs on your strength and dex

problem solved

 

[brianmanahan]

It's a skill (or ability) in FF

its an attribute in asherons call

 

[kyrax12]

Adderall

Does it really help?

 

[Raizinman]

Adderall

Yes, this is what most college students take to focus.

Of course, neither I nor this board encourages the use of taking non-prescribed drugs. See your local drug dealer, I mean you local doctor and get a prescription. Keep things legal.

 

[BladeVenom]

Chess.

 

[Kaido]

Mainly I have trouble focusing on my studies. When ever I start to read my textbook, my mind would just wander.

It took me a long, long time to figure out what worked for me, but 2 things did the trick:

1. Proper study environment
2. Study procedures

First: If you're serious about studying (i.e. getting stuff like homework & reading assignments done and not just flipping pages), then you need to get into an environment that helps you focus. Some people can focus anywhere, but most people need a fairly distraction-free environment. For me, I just stayed after classes in the library - quiet, good light, no computer or TV or fridge or friends to suck me away from doing my job. If you've got your computer keyboard pushed back and ATOT is only an arm's length away, you've just screwed yourself because it's way too easy to be distracted.

Second: I never learned how to study throughout grade school. It wasn't until several years into college that I learned how to actually study. My old version of studying was reading pages and jotting down random notes and not really doing much of anything useful. Doing homework is about having procedure that do their job, sort of like following a recipe to make a PB&J sandwich - you do a set of steps to achieve a specific outcome.

Studying means nothing. Instead, think of homework time as a job, where you complete specific activities: doing 50 math problems, completing 2 sketchbook assignments for art class, reading 3 chapters for history class, etc. You need methods to do each of those tasks - it's not just about putting in the time and mindlessly slogging through the actions, because that doesn't work. If you want more information, I'll give you a hint

 

[Mixolydian]

Does it really help?

yes, but people shouldn't be taking those kinds of meds unless they specifically need it.

 

[DainBramaged]

Adderall

I'm 30, had a severe Traumatic Brain Injury two years ago, and my doctor worked and worked to get me to try it. I have a huge aversion to drugs. I didn't do it for a long time, but I finally agreed to a one week trial. The results are ridiculous. How it changed my life.

Focus: I used to have great focus. I could multi-task no problem. After, no way. Adderall made it so that I could relate "point a" to "point b" and that all to "point z." Without it, a speaker would say something, and it'd be pointless because I couldn't relate it to anything without *extreme* effort.

Processing Speed: When a speaker is saying something, it requires much less time to process it all. My economics teacher was like, "The more a progressive tax rate goes up, the more that the actual tax percentage paid *also* goes up, but it's always behind the rate that the newest income is in." Without Adderall, I would have had to hear this two or three times out loud to make any sense. I would have to write it down and think on it for a second for maximum effect. With Adderall, I'd get it on the first go-round.

Patience: My wife says that I have much more patience when I'm on Adderall. Patience with her, the kids, myself, and my taskload. Before, I'd start snapping sooner. Now (according to her) I'm much more willing to hear it all out before I make snap judgment.

Confidence: I have much greater confidence to start a new task. I do the task without the hesitation that I had before. I'll tackle big projects and get them done quickly without having them take all day/afternoon.

Not saying you have a TBI. I hope you don't. But some of the probs might be the same. If you see an issue above that you are also having, it might be worth it to try it out. Just do it legally.

 

[kyrax12]

I'm 30, had a severe Traumatic Brain Injury two years ago, and my doctor worked and worked to get me to try it. I have a huge aversion to drugs. I didn't do it for a long time, but I finally agreed to a one week trial. The results are ridiculous. How it changed my life.

Focus: I used to have great focus. I could multi-task no problem. After, no way. Adderall made it so that I could relate "point a" to "point b" and that all to "point z." Without it, a speaker would say something, and it'd be pointless because I couldn't relate it to anything without *extreme* effort.

Processing Speed: When a speaker is saying something, it requires much less time to process it all. My economics teacher was like, "The more a progressive tax rate goes up, the more that the actual tax percentage paid *also* goes up, but it's always behind the rate that the newest income is in." Without Adderall, I would have had to hear this two or three times out loud to make any sense. I would have to write it down and think on it for a second for maximum effect. With Adderall, I'd get it on the first go-round.

Patience: My wife says that I have much more patience when I'm on Adderall. Patience with her, the kids, myself, and my taskload. Before, I'd start snapping sooner. Now (according to her) I'm much more willing to hear it all out before I make snap judgment.

Confidence: I have much greater confidence to start a new task. I do the task without the hesitation that I had before. I'll tackle big projects and get them done quickly without having them take all day/afternoon.

Not saying you have a TBI. I hope you don't. But some of the probs might be the same. If you see an issue above that you are also having, it might be worth it to try it out. Just do it legally.

Does Adderall make you smarter or something?