Audiobook5 hours
Concentration: Staying Focused in Times of Distraction
Written by Stefan Van der Stigchel
Narrated by Perry Daniels
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
4/5
()
About this audiobook
How to concentrate in a world of beeping smartphones, channel surfing, live-tweeting, pop-up ads, and other distractions.
We are in the midst of an attention crisis-caused in large part by our smartphones. There's a constant stream of information that we are powerless to withstand because it shows up in our notifications. More and more of us are finding it harder and harder to concentrate.
The good news, attention expert Stefan Van der Stigchel reports, is that we now know more about brain and behavior than ever before, and he draws on the latest scientific findings in his account of concentration. He explains, among other things, that the battle for our attention began long before the digital era; why our phones are so addictive; the importance of working memory (responsible for executing complicated tasks) and how to increase its capacity; and why multitasking is bad for our concentration, but attention rituals help it. He describes the 2017 Oscars debacle (when the Best Picture presenter was given the wrong card) as a failure of multitasking and shows that the presence of a passenger in a car reduces the risk of an accident. He explains the positive effects of taking "tech breaks", meditation, and even daydreaming. We can win the battle for our attention, Van der Stigchel argues, if we have the knowledge and the tools to do it.
We are in the midst of an attention crisis-caused in large part by our smartphones. There's a constant stream of information that we are powerless to withstand because it shows up in our notifications. More and more of us are finding it harder and harder to concentrate.
The good news, attention expert Stefan Van der Stigchel reports, is that we now know more about brain and behavior than ever before, and he draws on the latest scientific findings in his account of concentration. He explains, among other things, that the battle for our attention began long before the digital era; why our phones are so addictive; the importance of working memory (responsible for executing complicated tasks) and how to increase its capacity; and why multitasking is bad for our concentration, but attention rituals help it. He describes the 2017 Oscars debacle (when the Best Picture presenter was given the wrong card) as a failure of multitasking and shows that the presence of a passenger in a car reduces the risk of an accident. He explains the positive effects of taking "tech breaks", meditation, and even daydreaming. We can win the battle for our attention, Van der Stigchel argues, if we have the knowledge and the tools to do it.
LanguageEnglish
PublisherHighbridge Company
TranslatorDanny Guinan
Release dateAug 18, 2020
ISBN9781696601368
Related to Concentration
Related audiobooks
Clarity: Clear Mind, Better Performance, Bigger Results Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Decision-Making Blueprint: A Simple Guide to Better Choices in Life and Work Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Bored and Brilliant: How Spacing Out Can Unlock Your Most Productive and Creative Self Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Focus: Master the Art of Concentration and Ignoring Distractions with a Sound Mind Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Focus: A Simplicity Manifesto in the Age of Distraction Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Focus: Proven Techniques to Improve Your Focus Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Distracted Mind Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Rewired: Protecting Your Brain in the Digital Age Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsBrainblocks: Overcoming the 7 Hidden Barriers to Success Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Attention!: The power of simple decisions in a distracted world Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Making Up Your Own Mind: Thinking Effectively through Creative Puzzle-Solving Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsFinding Flow: The Psychology of Engagement with Everyday Life Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Concentration: Maintain Laser Sharp Focus and Attention for Stretches of 5 Hours or More Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Hyper-Learning: How to Adapt to the Speed of Change Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Lost Art of Listening, Second Edition: How Learning to Listen Can Improve Relationships Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Organize Your Emotions, Optimize Your Life: Decode Your Emotional DNA-and Thrive Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Rapt: Attention and the Focused Life Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Simple Shift: How Useful Thinking Changes the Way You See Everything Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5In or Out: A Practical Guide to Decision Making Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Hard to Be Human: Overcoming Our Five Cognitive Design Flaws Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5How to Listen So People Will Talk: Build Stronger Communication and Deeper Connections Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Focus in the Age of Distraction: 35 tips to focus more and work less Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSelf-Gamification Happiness Formula: How to Turn Your Life into Fun Games Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Never Stop Learning: Stay Relevant, Reinvent Yourself, and Thrive Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Brain Science: Personality, Maturity, and Emotional Intelligence Explained Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Psychology For You
Complex PTSD: From Surviving to Thriving Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5What Happened to You?: Conversations on Trauma, Resilience, and Healing Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5How to Keep House While Drowning: A Gentle Approach to Cleaning and Organizing Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5You’re Not the Only One F*cking Up: Breaking the Endless Cycle of Dating Mistakes Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Untethered Soul: The Journey Beyond Yourself Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Do Hard Things: Why We Get Resilience Wrong and the Surprising Science of Real Toughness Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Why We Sleep: Unlocking the Power of Sleep and Dreams Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The 48 Laws of Power Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5It Starts with Self-Compassion: A Practical Road Map Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Land of Delusion: Out on the edge with the crackpots and conspiracy-mongers remaking our shared reality Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5How To Win Friends And Influence People Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Radical Acceptance: Embracing Your Life with the Heart of a Buddha Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5What Every BODY is Saying: An Ex-FBI Agent’s Guide to Speed-Reading People Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Art of Seduction: An Indispensible Primer on the Ultimate Form of Power Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5How to Do the Work: Recognize Your Patterns, Heal from Your Past, and Create Your Self Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Divergent Mind: Thriving in a World That Wasn’t Designed For You Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Good Inside: A Guide to Becoming the Parent You Want to Be Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Why Marriages Succeed or Fail: And How You Can Make Yours Last Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Games People Play: The Basic Handbook of Transactional Analysis Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Banish Your Inner Critic: Silence the Voice of Self-Doubt to Unleash Your Creativity and Do Your Best Work Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Man's Search for Ultimate Meaning Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Writing into the Wound: Understanding trauma, truth, and language Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Memory Craft: Improve Your Memory with the Most Powerful Methods in History Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5How to Win Friends and Influence People: Updated For the Next Generation of Leaders Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Power of Moments: Why Certain Experiences Have Extraordinary Impact Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5
Reviews for Concentration
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
4/5
2 ratings1 review
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5This is the best book I've read on Attention. Found it by chance. The Author takes a very balanced approach to Interpreting research findings.
I struggled for a long time after reading about the Pomodoro technique that pushes for short blocks of time and then reading Deep work that advocates for longer sessions. This Author clearly explains all this in a way that makes it all make so much sense.
I really appreciate his "there might be more to it" approach.
Really Awesome Read!!!!!