“I’m reading, but none of it is sinking in.”
“This task usually takes no time, but today I just can’t get it done.”
“I keep rereading the same passage over and over.”
Do you ever have days like that, when your brain just doesn’t seem to work?
It might feel like you simply lack motivation, but our ability to focus is never exactly the same from day to day.
The brain’s cognitive functions are affected by many factors, including lack of sleep, fatigue and stress.
So what is happening in the brain when we “can’t concentrate”?
What Does the Brain Do When We “Focus”?
We usually think of “concentration” as a single ability.
In reality, though, when we focus on our work, we use
directing attention to the information we need
ignoring information we don’t need
holding information in mind temporarily
processing information while thinking
regulating our actions and emotions
and several other cognitive functions all at once.
One of the brain regions deeply involved in these functions is the prefrontal cortex.
Even when you write an email, for example,
you keep “what do I want to say?”
in mind while you think about your sentences, choose your words and organize them so the other person will understand.
Even a task that looks simple involves several processes running in the brain at the same time.
Working Memory: Your Mind’s “Workspace”
When thinking about concentration, one thing worth knowing about is working memory.
Simply put, it is the function that lets you hold information in mind for a short time while you use it to think.
For example, it is used when you are
“typing in a number you just heard on the phone,”
“reading the second half of a sentence while remembering the first half,”
“forming your own opinion while listening in a meeting,”
“doing mental math,”
and in many other situations.
You can picture it as a small desk inside your brain.
You spread the information you need out on the desk for a moment, combining and organizing it.
But that workspace has its limits.
Naturally, trying to process a lot of information at the same time puts a heavier load on it.
When emails, chat messages, phone calls and social media notifications keep coming in one after another while you work,
“Wait, what was I doing?”
you may find yourself thinking, right?
This, too, is thought to be one example of the cognitive load increasing as your attention keeps switching.
Lack of Sleep Affects Your Focus, Too
“I didn’t sleep well last night, so my brain isn’t working today.”
There is a scientific basis for this feeling.
A great deal of research has been done on sleep deprivation, and it has been reported to affect various cognitive functions, including sustained attention, working memory and judgment.
One of the clearest examples is the ability to maintain attention over a long period.
When you are short on sleep,
your focus breaks.
Your reactions slow down.
You make more mistakes.
You reread the same passage again and again.
These things become much more likely.
What makes ongoing sleep loss even trickier is that how “used to it” you feel may not match how you are actually performing.
“I’ve been getting only 5 to 6 hours of sleep for a while now, so I’m used to it.”
Even if you feel this way, it doesn’t necessarily mean the effects on your cognitive performance have disappeared.
That’s why, when your focus is slipping, it’s important not just to tell yourself to “try harder,” but also to look back and ask whether you’ve been sleeping well lately.
When You Can’t Focus, Choose to Rest
When your brain isn’t working,
“I have to concentrate harder,”
you tell yourself, and you tend to keep staring at the same screen for a long time.
However, it is not easy for people to keep their attention at the same level for long stretches.
Research has documented a “vigilance decrement,” a decline in attention that occurs when we keep doing the same task for a long time.
There are also studies suggesting that taking short breaks during a task may help limit the drop in performance on long tasks.
In other words,
resting does not necessarily mean
you aren’t working.
Get up from your seat for a moment.
Look away from the screen.
Take a short walk.
Close your eyes.
Make time to think about nothing.
Short resets like these can sometimes help you move your work forward afterward.
On days when you feel “my brain isn’t working today,” instead of pressing the accelerator even harder, taking your foot off the pedal for a moment is also an option.
Try Scheduling “Time to Do Nothing”
These days, information keeps flowing into our brains even when we are not working.
Social media on the commute.
Videos during breaks.
Your smartphone after you get home.
Checking news and messages right up until you fall asleep.
Even when your body is sitting in a chair, your mind may still be processing the information that keeps pouring in.
That’s why, now and then, it helps to deliberately set aside time for
“not looking at anything,”
“not operating anything,”
“not having to think about anything.”
Making that kind of time matters, too.
At La HEAD, you can close your eyes in a calm, fully private room while we care for not only your head but also your neck, shoulders and arms as one connected whole.
No computer, no smartphone.
No replying to work messages.
Just close your eyes, let your body relax, and be.
A day when you feel “my brain isn’t working” may not mean you aren’t trying hard enough; it may be a sign that it’s time to rethink your rest and sleep.
Precisely because your mind is thinking about so many things every day,
why not schedule not only time to work hard, but also time to do nothing at all?
We look forward to welcoming you.