The study is an activity that requires the most concentration. The study is not simply reading the lines of a book. It involves understanding and grasping ideas contained within every sentence you read. Therefore, it requires a clear focus and sustained concentration to do a productive study. However, nowadays, most students experience concentration issues. Some students may find it hard to focus fully on what they study. Other students may have a very short attention span which makes problem in understanding things in a sequence. For instance, they are unable to retain ideas when they move from one sentence to another sentence. Some students may have good concentration when they start their study but after studying for an hour or two, they feel mentally drained and unable to focus more on what they study. This affects your overall academic productivity negatively.

These concentration issues are quite common nowadays. However, you can deal with it very easily by focusing on your lifestyle, habits, style of thinking, correct approach to study and some other specific strategies. Here are some important strategies which can help you deal with your concentration issues.

Always study in a place with no distractions. Distractions are things which can easily prevent you concentrating on your study. The place where you study should have no distractions such as television, appealing colors and lights, complex sceneries or kids playing around. This is why some students find it very helpful to study at their desks (or study spaces) in their college or university because these study spaces have very few distractions compared to a room of the home. Moreover, at those study spaces, they naturally enter into a frame of mind where they can totally focus on your study. If you have to study at your home, your room should be simple, well-lit and ventilated. Try to minimize the distractions as much as possible. Better use a chair and table for your study rather than using a bed.

Some students have a habit of using cell phones for texting friends, listening to music and using social media sites while they are studying their books. Similarly, while studying on a laptop, they may use social media sites at the same time. This is not a good habit. When you do so, even after hours of sitting, you do very little study in the real sense because you waste all your time and attention on those other activities. When you are studying, avoid all other activities so that you can concentrate on your study and also give more time to your study. If you are receiving messages and notifications on your phone while you are studying, it is better to switch off your phone so you can fully concentrate on your study and be able to study effectively and productively.

When you are studying, you should only think about your study. If you are thinking (while you are studying) about the movie you watched last night or the party you will attend the next day, you are not paying full attention to what you are studying. When you sit to study, you have to forget about every other thing. Realize that this is your study time, and you should be totally focused on your study. If there is any pending task which is creeping into your mind and you cannot stop thinking about it, it is better to go and do that task first and come back to your study. Generally. you may have not some pending task, but still, some irrelevant thoughts may haunt your mind while you study. You have to throw these irrelevant thoughts out of your mind. In the beginning, it may seem a little difficult but with the passage of time, you will acquire this habit of concentrating on your study and not thinking about other things.

Eagerness for the study is indispensable for concentration. You should have a love for your study. If you have the internal desire to study and learn things, you will naturally be able to concentrate on your study. However, if a student takes study as a burden on him, it becomes difficult for him to concentrate on his study. Therefore, develop a love for your study. Make study an enjoyable activity for yourself.

The way the human brain is designed, it is not advisable to study for long hours in one go. Studying for many hours without breaks affects your mental capacity to concentrate as well as lowers your interest in your study. This is why some students complain that when they study for many hours, at some point they feel totally drained and unable to focus more. You should take short breaks when you have to study for a long time. Take short breaks after every one or two hours to relax your brain and regain yout concentration power for further study. During your break time, you can engage in some recreational activity, for instance go for a short walk, or listen to music and then come back to your study. Short breaks help you sustain your concentration power for longer.

Sleep is essential for physical as well as mental health. It relaxes you and your brain. It helps your brain restore its full concentration capacity. Have at least seven or eight hours of sleep every night. Some students have the habit of keeping awake till late at night. However, ‘early to bed early to rise’ works the best when it comes to overall physical and mental health.

Physical exercise on a regular basis is good for brain health. It enhances blood flow to the brain. During physical exercise, your body releases certain hormones which keep you happy and help in normal brain function. It is better to make a habit of at least going for walk for 30 minutes every day. In addition to physical activities, some exercises are specifically good for brain health such as the exercise of concentrating on a dot on a paper, and Yoga.

Certain proteins, vitamins and minerals are essential to brain health. Therefore, eat a healthy diet. You should include things in your diet which have nutrients good for brain. For instance, omega 3 is believed to be good for brain health which is found in fish. Therefore, including fish in your diet would be a good idea. Similarly, you should reduce the amount of caffeine (tea or coffee) because they may act as temporary stimulants but renders you sluggish after some time of its. Therefore, excessive consumption of tea or coffee may not be a good thing in long term.  

Prioritizing and scheduling your task is very much important. When you make a schedule and stick to it, you give proper time to every activity, such as your study, games, physical exercise, music, hanging out with friends. This is a systematic approach to performing all activities in a good way. However, for studies, it would help more because when will you study, you would only think about your study and be able to focus more on your study without thinking about other activities.