Your Attention, Please
Read through this sentence at normal speed, and see how many 'F's you count:
For a strange definition of fun, consider that all that fun means is that four out of five people enjoy counting 'F's.
What was the number you came up with? Most people come up with seven or perhaps eight, not the nine that there actually are. This is because we often use the sound we hear in our head as the clue to which letters we have encountered, not the actual letter on the page - and we hear 'ov' for 'of', so don't naturally count it as an 'F' sound.
Attention to detail, then, also requires us to focus very much on the specific task at hand, even when there are other factors that will put us off or can make it more difficult to focus.
To improve attention to detail, we need to ban other thoughts from our head and focus solely on the task in hand. We need to read carefully and not just scan. We need to be in a good state of mind, for instance not tired or suffering from a hangover. Creating a mental checklist of things to check can help greatly, too.
If there is a set process you can define each time you perform an activity, then going through that set process each time can be great at improving your attention to detail if you're not naturally gifted in this area. For instance, if you write letters to clients, then each may include the date, a reference number, their account number, their name and so forth. If you often find yourself forgetting to update the date on the template, or the name of the client, then simply write a checklist that dictates before you put any such letter in the envelope you go through and check that you have each of those elements in place.
Attention Span
Are you getting bored yet? Focus! Yes indeed, attention span is the period during which a person is able to focus on a task or experience without losing concentration.
All sorts of studies have been done with regard to how people's attention changes over time, and generally it is thought that it dips gradually to a low point, before rising again just before the expected end of something - such as a lesson at school.
If you are revising for exams or doing lots of study, having a good attention span is important - in order to maximise your use of time, ability to learn and the quality of your work.
To improve attention span, you need to banish all distractions. For many, this may mean working in silence and switching off TV or music. The other secret is to work in manageable chunks, so divide your time into lumps of time no more than 30 minutes long, with a short break in between tasks.
Finally, try to add variety - because repetition is the enemy of attention! By switching from different topics to others and changing what you are studying, it is much easier to maintain attention for a long period of time. However if you spend all your time working on one particular thing, then it can be a lot harder to maintain attention over a period of time.
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