improve your concentration

It's an obvious step - improve your concentration to improve your memory. To concentrate simply means to focusing intensely. If you aren't focused, you won't be able to memorize new facts or recall information you memorized previously. Here's some great news: Concentration is a mental skill you can develop. There are two ways to improve your concentration:

First, increase your brain's natural ability to concentrate regardless of the environment - in other words, increasing your attention.
Second, adjust your environment to make concentrating easier. This approach is especially important when you are actively studying something new for school, work, or leisure.

Step 1: Power Up Your Brain

To improve your concentration takes a little time and effort, but it can be worth it. In my experience you can make noticeable improvement in a relatively short time.
As recent books on neuroplasticity such as Train Your Mind, Change Your Brain (by Sharon Begley) explain, the structure and function of the adult brain is not set in stone as scientists have always said. In fact, each time you learn a new skill, memorize information, or develop new habits, the neurons and connections in your brain grow and change.
This is an exciting discovery, and is further evidence that your brain's abilities - including the ability to concentrate effectively - can be changed for the better. Research shows that these changes do not occur overnight, however. You have to work at it consistently and regularly. After all, you are literally reshaping your brain!
So, where should you begin if you want to improve your concentration? Start building into your daily schedule habits that lead to increased brain power. These include:

• Mindfulness meditation. Start with five minutes in the morning and five minutes before bed, every day. A great guide if you are just getting started with meditation is Andrea Weiss' book Beginning Mindfulness. I have this book and am working through the 10 week course in mindfulness it describes. See the Mediation and Memory page for more information.
• Proper sleep. Sorry to say it, but unless you are getting sufficient restful sleep, you are not going to be as mentally focused as you could be. See the Sleep & Memory page for tips and more information. Here's an idea: consider upgrading your crummy old mattress. You know, the one that's so uncomfortable it makes you toss and turn all night? I recently bought a new Spring Air mattress to replace my old bad mattress and have never slept better. It wasn't cheap, but I look at it as an investment in my health (and my memory!).
• Vitamins and other supplements. I've tried a number of brain enhancement supplements and other vitamins for memory. One in particular that seemed to help me concentrate better is "Attend" by VAXA. This is a non-prescription supplement for adults who may have Adult Attention Deficit Disorder.I have never been diagnosed with ADD, but I found this product almost immediately improved my ability to focus. The effect is like being "in the zone", where you visually and mentally lock in on the person you are speaking to, or the material you are reading.
  I can't guarantee it will improve your concentration as much as it seemed to improve mine, but I'm a believer. The cheapest I've been able to find Attend is on Amazon.com, but you may want to shop around. You might also want to take a look at Synaptol, a supplement for concentration sold by MicroNutra.
  Second, I recommend you take a mulitivitamin each day. That way, just in case your diet is not the greatest, you can perhaps avoid a vitamin deficiency that could hurt your brain. It also doesn't hurt to supplement with Vitamin C and fish oil capsules which are good for brain health.
  One important note - always consult your doctor if you have questions about your diet or any supplements you plan to take.
• Brain games. The more you use certain skills, the more they are reinforced in the brain, research shows. So it makes sense that playing concentration games and games that require you to focus will improve your concentration ability.My Brain Games page has over 25 free brain games you can play anytime. Again, though, you need to be consistent. Play for at least 10 minutes each day. Have fun, and get the benefits, too.
• Eat healthier. Your brain needs the proper nutrients to allow you to focus, and your blood sugar needs to be properly regulated (the brain consumes glucose, a sugar, as its primary fuel). See the Diet & Memory page for more about this.

tep 2: Optimize Your Environment

In addition to building the habits described above into your daily routine, also adjust your environment to improve your concentration when studying.

• Create a study spot. Your brain loves routine. Create a place where all you do is study. An obvious choice is a secluded desk of some kind, but the trick is to make sure you only study in that spot. Studying in bed is a bad habit, for example, because your body is trained to want to sleep once you get into bed.
• Try green light. Here's an odd tip. Recent studies have shown that green light improves concentration. Install a green light bulb in the study lamp at your desk. If you think it makes a difference and helps you to concentrate better, let me know!
• Try the color red. Green light not working? Look at red instead. A study in the journal Science explains how color affects the brain. One interesting discovery: red improves concentration and memory, while blue improves creativity.Try these ideas when you really need to focus:
  - Set small red items out on your desk.
  - Add red to your outfit (red shirt, red accessory, etc.).
  - Hang red-themed pictures on your wall.
  - Change your computer's desktop background to red.
  You never realized your blue walls were wrecking your concentration, did you? Now you have a way to focus better whenever you want.
  Just bring out the red!
• Remove distractions. Turn off the ringer on your phone and take other steps to prevent interruptions. Don't study with the television on or with talk radio playing. Some studies have shown that soft instrumental music (no vocals) can help improve your concentration, however.
• Use Time Boxes. Set a time limit when you need to study new material. For example, let's say you want to read one chapter in a book (and remember it). Decide in advance that you can have 45 minutes to read the chapter, and 15 minutes to review it. Set a timer to keep yourself honest, then pace yourself to keep within the alotted time. This use of Time Boxes will really help you stay focused on the material.
• Stay motivated with rewards. If you see studying as drudge work, it's hard to concentrate. One way to stay motivated is to set up a reward system. Tell yourself you have to earn that hour of watching your favorite show later in the evening by first completing one hour of intense studying. That way, even if the material is dry, you have the reward to look forward to.
• Take a break every two hours. You mental energy will begin to decline after a long period of study. So every two hours or so, take a ten minute break. Walk around, eat a light snack, or just stare at the wall to relax your mind.
• Activate your Theta waves. One of the steps in the IMPACT memory technique developed in England is mental preparation. Our brains are not always in the best state of readiness for remembering new material, but it turns out you can easily change this simply by changing your breathing. When it's time to study or remember something new, switch your breathing pattern to be slower and deeper. Deeper and slower breathing actually changes the way your brain works, by inducing the brain's electrical pulses to switch to Theta waves.
  Theta waves normally occur in your brain in hypnogogic sleep. This is the stage of sleep when outside noises like an alarm clock can influence dreaming. It turns out being in this stage also can aid memory. A good example is the tip-of-the-tongue phenomenon, when information you've been trying to think of all day suddenly comes back to you after napping or waking up from sleep.
  To activate your Theta waves, switch your breathing to your lower abdomen - in other words, start breathing deeply from your stomach. Consciously slow your rate of breathing too. After a few moments, you should feel calmer, the Theta waves should be flowing in your brain, and you should be more receptive to concentrating on new information.

Set Your Goals.........

Are your goals SMART? – Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Rewarding, Time-Deadlined
Just about everyone has heard about the SMART Goal Setting method. But are you really using it. Proper goal setting seems to be a lot of work, and takes considerable time to set up.
Many people stop short of completing the necessary detail to maintain their focus long after the novelty has long worn off. Hence, “The New Year’s Resolution” syndrome of stopping short of getting what you want, prevails.
Goal Setting is easy and fun to maintain, once you have the fundamental work completed, because you are gathering momentum, and attaining success one step at a time! It is much easier to continue along a chosen path when you know that it is only a matter of time until you have what you want.
Magnify and Intensify your Desire, bring it closer, see it clearly and make it larger, sharpen and maintain your focus. A-h-h-h. There’s the rub, How do you maintain focus, and minimize distraction on the road to what you want? When all seems lost, how do you keep getting back up for more?
Have Great reasons, and Keep Them in Front of You Always!
Whenever possible, once you decide on what you want, take some action, view the exact model of what you want, and do it as many times as necessary to burn the desire you have for this goal into your subconscious mind. Write down every detail that you love and appreciate about your goal.
Use all of your senses in describing it, eyes for seeing how it looks, nose for smelling how it smells, mouth for tasting exactly how delicious, how it feels to the touch, experience all the different textures, etc., capture every delightful detail in your mind.
This will always magnify, and intensify your desire and focus, instead of just looking at pictures alone. However, you will still want pictures too!
Take Pictures of your goals and place them everywhere:
On and in your day timer
On your fridge
On your bathroom mirror
On your bedroom wall, frame a collage of pictures
In work binders
On home office wall
On your desk at work
Make them your wallpaper on your computer
Email pictures to yourself, or have a close friend email them
Put them everywhere you spend time each day.
Make your own audio tape in your own voice, using your posture and physiology of excitement, energy and determination, make it descriptive, from a script taken while looking at what you want – smell, touch, feel, and imagine it. Listen to this tape frequently.
Have someone make a video presentation of you with your goals – detailed, then do theirs! Have fun with this. Watch videos of the rich and famous. Experience everything!
Goals like cars or boats, or winnebagos – go to the dealerships and get in, take pictures, smell them, feel the upholstery, go for a test drive, sit in them, close your eyes and visualize you in it, feel the emotions rising up, those you hold onto, go see them as often as you need to – get it in focus, and maintain your high levels desire
Dream Homes – get home magazines, real estate papers, architectural magazines, any publications that are relevant to your focus, immerse yourself totally!
Go to open houses, new home models, take pictures when you can, and you will come across something that fires you up.
Go to places like Home Depot, find everything you want, inside and outside, go to the furniture store, pick out the furniture, just like you want – visit these places as often as needed, with everything, take pictures, feel the feelings, as if you already are in possession of it all! Lock in that thought.
Travel Goals – pick up brochures, read magazines and books pertaining to the places you want to go, the things you want to do and see there.
Talk to travel agents that take a lot of trips to those areas that interest you and seek the inside story on the places to take in while you’re there.
Make a budget for all you want to do and have during your stay, and imagine you are already there and ready to go!
Make up score cards and update them frequently so you can see your progress towards each goal.
See in your mind’s eye how you are making it. Immerse yourself in it! Have it on your mind always. Look for every opportunity to concentrate your power on getting it.
The human brain is the most awesome instrument for creating what it focuses on. Keep what you want front and center, and your subconscious mind will go to work for you and show you the way! And remember that you can only think one thought at a time, so make it a thought that serves you.
There are many ways to get your internal fires burning. Find out what works best for you. This is enough to get you started for now.See you next time.

How to overcome from mistakes?

We will always make mistakes. The keys to overcoming your mistakes are to:
• Learn the mistakes.
• Know what you did incorrectly.
• Accept that you made a mistake.
• Use the mistake to better yourself and your business.
Not until you are willing to embrace those things, will you be ready to find out the hidden treasures that can be found when mistakes are made.
As a business owner, you know all about mistakes. You made little ones as you got started. For some, too many mistakes and they find that the business life is not for them. And, maybe it isn’t.
Being in business for yourself requires a thick skin. You will have customers that are impossible to please, competition that seems to outdo you at every turn and unsuccessful marketing strategies. But, you live and learn. You will only be able to continue building your business if you have the right attitude – a positive one.
Turn your mistakes into big money.
It is human nature not to want to feel isolated. That extends to the business world. A business owner, who is brave enough to point out the mistakes they have made and how they learned from them, will have a following among other entrepreneurs. You can take that on the lecture circuit and gain a wide audience.
Networking is a part of doing business.
Your connections can be helpful when sales are slow or when you are looking to put together a new business venture. Targeting budding businesses with your brand of sage advice is one way to turn a negative into a positive.
What about customers? Maybe you hired someone who wasn’t the best at customer service. Every business owner knows that poor customer service can break a business. Instead of sitting back and brooding about your misfortune, take action.
Use this opportunity to revamp your customer service policy. That employee may be better in another area of your business. This may be the time to automate your customer service with autoresponder messages, a FAQ section on your website or an answering service.
Challenges force you to take a look at your business. Is there a way to improve an existing process? Of course there is. Use a mistake such as sending the wrong product or a failed online checkout process to make changes that will increase sales in the future.
What sets you apart?
You are willing to learn from mistakes (by using suggestions like those above) to continue to move forward in your business pursuits instead of leaning on them like crutches. Excuses rarely accomplish anything good. Mistakes can sour your mood. Shake it off and find out what you can learn from them to make your business a success.