“Pay attention!”
“If you just focused more, you’d be more successful!”
We’ve all probably heard these kinds of admonishments from a
teacher or a parent. And most of us probably castigate ourselves on a daily
basis for our inability to concentrate on the task at hand. It seems in our
distracted world of texts, tweets, and news feeds, more and more folks are
bemoaning their scattered thinking and have a strong desire to improve their
attention span and focus. Anecdotal evidence bears this out: the number of
people searching for “how to focus” has increased dramatically in the past five
years, and two of the most popular posts on AoM are about removing
web distractions and improving
concentration.
Many of us want to improve our attention, but we often come
up short. When we do fail, the typical response is to redouble our efforts and
swear to the gods of attention that we’ll never browse Reddit again. But the
very next day we find ourselves backsliding into our old scatter-brained ways.
What’s going on here? Why is it so hard to bridle our
attention?
In answering this question, it’s common to point to the
increasing amount of distractions in our modern world and/or a lack of
individual discipline. These factors are certainly part of the problem, but
there’s a more fundamental underlying issue at play: people want to
master their attention, but they don’t know what attention actually is.
When most people think of attention, they think of the
ability to completely focus on one thing without being distracted. So when they
set about trying to improve their attention, this is all they concentrate on.
But single-minded focus is in fact only one facet of
attention. Recent research has shown that attention actually comes in different
types — each with unique strengths and weaknesses — that are best deployed or
rested in various situations. Mastering your attention then, is like being the
supreme commander of your mind’s armed forces; instead of continually placing
the same unit at the frontlines and being dismayed each time their trench gets
overrun by the enemy, you rotate your troops in a savvy and deliberate way.
In short, attention mastery is attention management.
Since you can’t change what you can’t understand, in this
first installment of a two-part series, we’re going to dive into the nature of
attention – what it is, how it works, and why it’s so important beyond just
being able to sit and read Moby Dick for more than 5 minutes
at a time. By understanding how attention works, we’ll be better equipped to
manage it.
Next week, we’ll look at specific actions you can take to
improve and manage your attention.
Let’s get started!
And pay attention, damnit!
What is Attention?
“Knowing something about the mechanics of your attention can
be as powerful as any therapy or medication or drug.” – Steven Johnson
Psychologist and philosopher William James best defined
attention over 100 years ago.
“Everyone knows what attention is. It is taking possession
of the mind, in clear and vivid form, of one out of what seems several
simultaneously possible objects or trains of thought. Focalization,
concentration of consciousness are of its essence. It implies a withdrawal from
some things in order to deal effectively with others.”
There’s a lot going on in any given moment around you and
even within your own body. If we didn’t have the ability to attune ourselves to
specific things while ignoring the rest, we’d go insane. In fact,
neuroscientists believe that the reason LSD causes psychedelic experiences is
that the drug inhibits our brain’s attention networks, thus causing sensory
overload. If we didn’t have the ability to pay attention, life would be one
long LSD trip.
“The universe is change; our life is what our thoughts make
it.” —Marcus Aurelius, Meditations
What we decide to pay attention to and what we decide to
ignore shapes our existence and our reality (Or as Yoda put it, “Your focus is
your reality.”). Because everyone pays attention to different things, everyone
has different conceptions of reality. Attention explains why three different
eyewitnesses can have three different accounts of a crime and why couples get
in fights about who is or isn’t pulling their weight around the house —
everyone is training their focusing lens on different things and framing the
“shots” of their reality in their own way.
So attention is, in a nutshell, the ability to focus on
certain stimuli or thoughts while ignoring others, which in turn shapes how we
perceive and experience the world around us.
All well and good. But how exactly does attention work?
Well it’s a lot more complex than you’d think. There’s no
“attention” part of the brain that you can just flip on. Rather, attention
involves a complex combination of different cognitive processes — like working
memory and executive control — that work together in unison. Moreover,
there are actually different types of attention, each with their own benefits
and downsides.
Types of Attention
Involuntary Attention
Involuntary attention isn’t consciously controlled by us,
but rather by compelling stimuli in our environment.
We experience involuntary attention when we hear a loud
noise, see what we think is a snake slithering in the grass, or simply notice
something new and novel. For our ancestors, involuntary attention helped them
avoid danger and find rewards — it allowed them to react quickly to predators
or discover new resources.
Stimuli that’s possibly dangerous typically grabs our
involuntary attention more than stimuli that could lead to a reward; in
primitive times, simply surviving was more important than getting ahead. This
explains why eyewitness testimony during a violent crime is often unreliable. A
victim or bystander will automatically focus in on the weapon being used, while
everything else, including the perpetrator’s face or what he was wearing,
becomes a blur.
From an evolutionary standpoint, there’s a benefit to
reacting automatically to potentially dangerous or rewarding stimuli. However,
in the modern age, our involuntary attention has been hijacked by the constant
stream of stuff going on around us — urban noise, TV, smartphone pings,
background music, etc. “Look, I see a bear!” has become, “Look a funny video on
YouTube! An interesting article on this news site! A photo of my friend on
Facebook….” Basically, the sensitivity of our involuntary attention to the new
and unusual is the reason why the internet is so damn distracting.
While our involuntary attention can be overwhelmed by an
onslaught of distractions, mild stimulation of it actually puts us in a “soft
fascination” state that quiets the mind and gives our voluntary attention (see
below) a break. Getting out into nature puts us in this soft fascination state
– there are different things to see whilst out walking in the woods, but the
stream of incoming stimuli is so slow and mellow our mind feels simultaneously
engaged and at rest. For this reason, spending
time in nature not only feels great, but has been shown to relieve
stress, anxiety, and depression.
Voluntary Attention
Voluntary attention is a focusing process over which we have
conscious control. Instead of our attention being at the whim of whatever
stimuli grabs for it, we deliberately decide what our mind attends to.
Voluntary attention requires effort, willpower, and
intentional concentration. When your elementary school teacher told you to “pay
attention!” she was telling you to use your voluntary attention.
You exercise your voluntary attention when you decide which
of the stimuli bombarding your involuntary attention you’ll attend to, and
which you’ll ignore, as in when you choose not to answer your cell phone in
order to get out of the way of a honking taxi. We also call upon our voluntary
attention when we try to shut out all competing stimuli in order to concentrate
on a single task, like writing a memo, reading a book, meditating, or even
playing a video game.
The more stimuli there are competing for our involuntary
attention, the harder our voluntary attention has to work to stay engaged with
the task at hand. For example, our voluntary attention goes into overdrive when
we try to have a conversation in a loud restaurant and really
stay present with the other person. Despite the fact that there’s so much
going on around us — waiters taking orders, other people yakking, toddlers
crying — we’re able to ignore all that stuff and just pay attention to the
conversation (most of the time, of course). It’s a pretty amazing cognitive
feat if you stop and think about it. This may be why adding one more
distraction to the mix – a smartphone on the table – can end up pulling you
away from the conversation; your voluntary attention is already working so hard
that it becomes the straw that breaks your concentration’s back!
If involuntary attention allowed our species to survive,
voluntary attention is what has really helped us thrive. It’s
through voluntary attention that cities were built, wars were won, and
masterpieces written. On an individual level, voluntary attention is what
allows you to progress with your personal goals. When you plan
your week, write
in your journal, listen
to a loved one, or work
on a new habit, you use your voluntary attention.
The thing with voluntary attention is that just
like willpower, we have a finite amount of it. Part of the reason people
complain so much about feeling distracted or having a short attention span is
that our modern world taxes our voluntary attention so stinking much. Every day
we have to consciously decide to ignore an ocean of stimuli, from the simple
noises of a city, to electronic billboards, to smartphone pings, to text
messages. On top of that, constantly switching where our attention lies also
saps our supply. However, voluntary attention is also similar to willpower in
that research has shown that it can be strengthened with certain exercises and
practices. (We’ll be talking about those in our next post.)
Default Mode: Mind Wandering
When an outside stimulus isn’t engaging our involuntary
attention or we’re not using our voluntary attention to attend to a specific
task or thought, our mind shifts into a default mode called “mind wandering” –
what we often refer to as daydreaming.
Lots of research has been done about mind wandering, yet
cognitive and neuroscientists still disagree about what exactly is going on
with our attention whenever we engage in it. On the one hand, mind wandering
takes our voluntary attention away from whatever task we might be working on at
the moment. It often happens while we’re engaged in low cognition activities
like showering, walking, exercising, or even reading. For example, you might be
reading this post, but thinking about what you’re going to eat for dinner
tonight. So you’re not fully paying attention to the oh-so-masterful prose
right in front of you…
On the other hand, research has shown that when we
engage in mind wandering, our brains actually use the same regions that are
utilized when we’re trying to exercise voluntary attention; even though
we’re not paying attention to the task at hand, we are paying some attention to
our distracting thoughts (like tonight’s dinner).
Hmmm…what’s going on here?
The answer is that mind wandering is a true cognitive
paradox. When our mind wanders, we use our voluntary attention, just not
necessarily on the thing we wanted to pay attention to originally.
Mind wandering is an important facet in our attention system
because we spend so much of our time in this default mode — about 50% of our
wakeful thoughts are aimless daydreams. Spending time in this state has both
benefits and drawbacks, and it’s important to understand what those are so you
can intentionally manage how often you do it and what your mind drifts to while
on these cognitive rambles.
The Drawbacks of Mind Wandering
Apart from the fact that mind wandering keeps you from being
fully present in what you’re doing, there are some other downsides to
our brain’s default mode. When we let our minds wander, we typically drift
towards negative thoughts and emotions. We’re focused on unresolved problems,
conflicts with co-workers and girlfriends, unfulfilled goals, bills to be paid,
even an embarrassing moment from ten years ago. Research has shown that even
neutral thoughts that arise when our mind wanders tend to be shaded with a
negative emotional tone. What’s more, once the negative thought/emotion stream
gets going during mind wandering, we tend to fixate and ruminate on those
thoughts (like a cow chewing its cud), which pulls us deeper and deeper into a
funk.
Not only do we tend to focus on the negative when our minds
wander, that stream of negativity is typically directed at ourselves, because
we’re the most common subject of our musings. Mind wandering’s negativity bias
and self-focus turns us all into daydreaming Eeyores (“Nobody cares. I’m so
sad.”). What’s interesting is that once we start to ramp up our voluntary
attention again and shift out of the mind wandering zone, the regions involved
with emotional and self-referential preoccupations quiet and we start to feel
better. Whenever you’re feeling in the dumps, Grandpa’s admonition to get over
yourself and get to work is actually incredibly sound advice.
The Benefits of Mind Wandering
Despite mind wandering’s downsides, research has shown there
are some benefits to spending time in this cognitive zone. First, mind
wandering is just your brain’s way of directing unused processing power towards
solving unresolved problems in your life. While we tend to wander towards problems
and negative emotions when we engage in mind wandering, our mind floats to
those things in hopes of resolving them. Mind wandering’s negativity bias is
just trying to nudge us to work on the issues in our lives that need some
untangling.
Second, while we tend to focus on the negatives when we
daydream, we can also experience positive thoughts and emotions. Cognitive
scientists call these more rose-colored musings “positive-constructive
daydreaming.” During positive-constructive daydreaming, we engage in future
planning, reminisce about positive emotional experiences, and engage in moral
reasoning.
Third, mind wandering can get our creative juices flowing.
One study showed that individuals who spent time mind wandering before taking
on a challenge that asked them to come up with novel uses of an object were
able to generate 40 percent more original ideas than individuals who didn’t
daydream before getting started. Mind wandering boosts creativity because it’s
so unstructured. By allowing our mind to freely ramble over the hills and dales
of our craniums, we’re able to make connections we otherwise wouldn’t if we
were actively directing our attention to one single solution. Mind wandering
explains why so many of history’s great insights and discoveries were made
while taking a walk or soaking in a bath.
Finally, and most importantly, daydreaming gives your
voluntary and involuntary attention systems a break. We’re surrounded by a
cacophony of stimuli that constantly compete for our attention. To be truly
effective with our precious attention, we need periods in which we’re not
strenuously attending to anything.
To sum it up, mind wandering can be good or bad, depending
on how you manage and direct it. While research suggests that whether our mind
wandering skews negative or positive depends largely in part on our genetic
temperament, research also shows we do have the conscious ability to
nudge our wandering mind into more constructive modes.
Narrow vs. Broad Focus Attention
Once we decide to direct our voluntary attention to a
certain stimulus, we can attend to it with either narrow or broad focus
attention.
The difference between narrow and broad focus is neatly
explained with an analogy from American football. When a quarterback drops back
for a pass, he’ll initially have broad focus attention. He’ll take in the
entire playing field, read defenders, and find an open receiver. He’s allowing
as much information into his mind as possible. Once he decides on a receiver to
throw to, he’ll shift to a narrow focus attention, calculating the best time to
throw the ball and the kind of speed and arc to give it in order to
successfully get the ball into the receiver’s hands. (And now to truly
appreciate the power of both the mind and the NFL quarterback: this entire
process averages just about 2.75 seconds.)
Broad (or open) focus attention is great for getting your
bearings, understanding the “big picture,” and comprehending complex systems
and relationships. It gives us a quick and dirty conception of a situation.
However, broad focus attention isn’t so useful for managing important details
like your checkbook or calendar or editing, say, a blog post.
Narrow (or sharp) focus attention allows us to be efficient,
productive, and meticulous. However, too narrow a focus can lead to tunnel
vision, causing us to lose sight of other important facts or details. The
drawback of narrow focus attention is best illustrated in the famous invisible
gorilla test.
Neither broad nor narrow attention is “better” than the
other — they each have their strengths and weaknesses. Again, the trick is
learning how to manage the two and knowing when to switch to one type of focus
or the other.
Something that makes this idea easier to grasp is
understanding how emotion interacts with narrow and broad focus. Research shows
that when we’re engaged in narrow focus attention, our negativity bias
increases and we’re more likely to home in on negative emotions and/or miss
positive stimuli. Conversely, when we shift to a broad focus attention, we feel
happier and more optimistic.
Think about the arguments you may have had with your wife
about who’s doing more of the chores around the house. Studies have shown that
spouses both believe they are doing the lion’s share – which is of course
impossible. Each spouse’s narrow focus helps them clearly remember how many
times they’ve taken out the trash and cooked dinner that week, but keeps them
from taking notice of all the things their partner is doing. Shifting to a
broader focus will help you pick up on the ways your spouse is pitching in too,
helping you avoid
the tit-for-tat trap and have a happier relationship.
The Benefits of Learning to Manage Your Attention
When you think about the benefits of attention, you probably
think how crucial it is in tackling intellectual challenges like writing papers
or reading anything longer than 800 words. And indeed, research has confirmed
what all of us already knew intuitively — that the ability to manage our
attention is the linchpin of success in cognitive endeavors. For example,
students who know how to pay attention to their studies for long periods of
time do better than students who can’t and these same students typically
outperform their less attentive peers later on in life.
But after reading this post, you’re hopefully realizing that
attention isn’t just crucial for studying Latin conjugations. Research shows
that improving our attention has a wide variety of benefits that extend into
every area of our lives:
- Improves
relationships – attention allows you to be fully present with
another individual which makes them feel acknowledged, understood, and
charmed.
- Boosts
resilience – having a handle on your attention allows you to
direct it to positive events, and away from ruminating on the negative.
- Increases
happiness – being able to shift into a broad focus can help you
notice good things and see opportunities and connections you would have
otherwise missed.
- Increases
creativity – purposefully engaging in mind wandering sessions
and nudging them in positive directions can help generate new ideas.
- Deepens
our wisdom – directed mind wandering sessions can encourage deep
thinking, the application of moral reasoning, and productive internal
debates.
- Improves
our critical thinking – attention not only allows you to read and
digest a long text, but truly wrangle with and analyze it.
- Gives
us a more flourishing and enjoyable life – all these benefits +
not having to miss out on learning the reams and reams of knowledge that
can’t be condensed into a soundbite or a list-type article = a meaningful
and satisfied life.
Besides the benefits that improved management of attention
brings to the individual, several social critics and philosophers argue that
our society’s decreasing attention is leading us to a new “cultural dark age”
in which individuals no longer have the deep, sustained focus necessary for
synthesizing and assessing information or expressing complex thoughts. Instead,
we live in a world of “Present
Shock” in which everything happens now, information is conveyed via memes
and tweets, and we no longer have the skill or wisdom to separate the signal
from the noise. One could argue that the crises and general malaise we’ve
experienced in the West during the past thirty years is, at its core, a crisis
of attention. We’re either paying attention to the wrong problems or too
distracted by the next “controversy” to solve the issues at hand.
Bottom line: If you want to improve yourself and the world
around you, the first step is to learn how to harness your attention. It’s the
locomotive of human progress.
Conclusion
Attention mastery is attention well managed. Like any good
manager, you need to know the strengths and weaknesses of your different
attentional team members and to which task you should assign them. By now you
should understand the strengths and weaknesses of your involuntary, voluntary,
and mind wandering attentional modes, as well as the pros and cons of having a
broad or narrow focus. With this mental framework in place, we can apply this
knowledge to creating concrete and specific actions that will improve and
strengthen specific aspects of our attention as well as manage its different
elements. The end goal is a well-rounded and effective attention ability that
will aid you in achieving excellence in all areas of your life. To the
attainment of that goal is where we will turn next week.
Tl;dr: You’re kidding, right?
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