Lucy Jo Palladino, PhD

Your Friend in the Fight to Stay Focused

Are You in Your Focus Zone?

Lucy Jo Palladino, PhD
Our fast-paced, high-tech world is changing our brains and no one is immune. Adrenaline-based brain chemicals make us crave stimulation. We live on the edge of feeling overwhelmed, but get bored the moment we pause to get organized. Ever wonder . . . Do you control your attention or does your attention control you?

From FIND YOUR FOCUS ZONE


You and I live in an always-on culture and someone is always upping the ante. Technology makes you more productive but pressures you to pick up the pace. New cell phone? Good. Now your boss can reach you on your day off. Wireless PDA, huh? Excellent. We'll expect emails, too. Tablet-sized PC? We'll instant message you those files. We juggle constant demands. Multitasking is rampant. For better or for worse, we're rewiring our brains.

Attention is How We Create


Learning to direct your attention empowers you. The more you control the demands on your attention, the less those demands control you. You exert authority over the court of your life and decide what you let in and what you keep out. The Spanish philosopher Jose Ortega y Gasset once said, "Tell me to what you pay attention and I will tell you who you are."

We create ourselves by what we choose to notice. Whatever we put our attention on develops and grows. A Cherokee elder was teaching the children of the tribe. He told them, "A fight is going on inside of me. It is a terrible battle, and it is between two wolves. One wolf represents fear, anger, guilt, greed, and senselessness. The other stands for faith, peace, truth, love, and reason. The same fight is going on inside you, and inside every other person, too." The children thought about it for a while and one child asked the wise man, "Which wolf will win?" The old Cherokee replied, "The one you feed."

Your Observer Self


Who are you? Look in the mirror and ask yourself this question when you feel happy. You're bright, good-looking, successful, blessed with family and friends, and your eyes are full of life. Now face that mirror when you feel glum. You're in a rut, you look old, others have more money, you're gaining weight. What a difference your mood makes!

Moods are the lenses through which we see everything around us and ourselves. We may be looking at the world through rose-colored glasses, or through prisms that exaggerate and distort. An observer self - sometimes called "mindfulness" - is the ability to name the lens you're looking through and remind yourself what life looks like without it.

The "What Am I Not Doing Now?" Question


It takes a tough observer self to recognize anxiety, because we hide it from ourselves with distraction. The "What am I NOT doing now?" question uncovers our hidden anxiety and the diversionary tactics we use to avoid it.

Avoidance is a cinch in the digital age. Distraction is everywhere. We don't have to look farther than the TV, computer, or cell phone to escape from feelings that make us uneasy. To uncover anxiety, we need to be wiling to see through our own avoidance.

If you don't have control over what's making you anxious, distraction is a powerful way to reduce anxiety. One study found that for children awaiting surgery, playing Game Boy reduced anxiety better than mild sedatives or holding hands with their parents. But if you're anxious about something you have control over - like getting a report written on time or balancing your budget - distraction is a minus, not a plus. Unless it's a deliberate strategy - namely, a strict time-limited break to amp you up and reward your progress - playing Game Boy when there's work to be done wastes your time and masks your anxiety. An honest observer self will tell you so.

Steps to Teach Kids Attention


1. Be a good role model.

2. Reward attention, not disruption.

3. Give your child tools.

4. Set limits.

5. Believe in Your Child

The Power of Attention


When author Amy Sutherland was writing a book about trainers of exotic animals, a lightbulb went off in her head. She decided to try the same techniques as animal trainers on her husband, and she discovered that she got results. She used her attention to reward behavior she liked and she ignored behavior she disliked.

If her husband threw even one dirty shirt into the hamper, she thanked him. At the same time, she ignored the soiled clothes on the floor, which to her pleasant surprise began to disappear.

One day, Sutherland was complaining incessantly about her painful new braces and her husband said nothing. She realized he was using the power of his attention, too, and it worked.

Attention is a power like any other. It can be used for good or bad. You can use your attention to promote desirable behaviors or undesirable behaviors in yourself and others. Knowing what you're doing as you're doing it, gives you the chance to use your power wisely.

Now in 8 Languages


Find Your Focus Zone by Lucy Jo Palladino, PhD, published by Free Press, Simon & Schuster.

What is your focus zone?


Distraction, overload, and procrastination are epidemic today. Whether you're over- or under-stimulated, it's hard to concentrate.

Your focus zone is the range of just-right stimulation between boredom and feeling overwhelmed, where your ability to pay attention is at its best.

Simple psychological strategies can help you stay in your focus zone.

Why do you have your best attention when you're in your zone?


Chemicals in the brain called neurotransmitters are responsible for attention. Neurotransmitters in the adrenaline family "activate" you. In other words, you need some adrenaline to keep you alert. But too much adrenaline makes you hyper and causes burnout.

Does everyone have a focus zone?


Yes. Everyone has a focus zone. But it's different for different people. It's even different for the same person from activity to activity.

How can your focus zone be different for different activities?


If your activity is physical, you need more adrenaline. If it's mental, you need less.

In sports, for instance, a game such as football requires more strength than skill, so you need lots of adrenaline. Your focus zone is at the high-stim end of the range. But a game such as golf or tennis requires more skill than strength, so you need less adrenaline. Your focus zone is low-stim.

Why has it become important to understand your focus zone?


In today's fast-paced, high-tech, quick-click world, everyone is prone to attention swings. Always-on technology kicks you into a high-adrenaline state of over-stimulation. Then ordinary life seems boring by comparison, so you drop into a low-adrenaline state of under-stimulation. You skip right over your focus zone -- the state of just-right stimulation.

In today's workplace, most activities are mental and require less adrenaline, not more. But constant interruptions, distractions, and pressures make you pump more adrenaline, not less.

Old ways of paying attention don't work any more. You need new psychological skills to stay in your focus zone.

Tips To Stay in Your Focus Zone


1. Keep track of your adrenaline level.
- Use a 1 to 10 scale or simply rate yourself: "too low," "too high," or "in the zone!"

2. Make a list of ways to psych up.
- Play upbeat music, open a window, vary tasks.

3. Make a list of ways to calm down.
- Play relaxing music, breathe deeply, sip herbal tea.

4. Use self-talk to keep yourself on-track.
- "What do I need to do now?" . . ."Stay with it; stay with it; stay with it;" . . . "I've finished things that are harder than this."

5. When you're distracted, remind yourself that there's something you're avoiding, probably because it's too high-stim (evokes anxiety or fear) or too low-stim (boring) or both. Make yourself face it, one step at a time.

Dr. Lucy Jo Palladino, an award-winning psychologist and attention expert for thirty years, is the author of Dreamers, Discoverers, and Dynamos. Principal investigator of a federal grant, clinical faculty member at the University of Arizona Medical School, she's been featured in Family Circle, Men's Health, the Los Angeles Times, Boston Globe, Web MD, and more. She was the resident psychologist for the Morning Show on KFMB-TV, the CBS affiliate in San Diego, California.

To learn more about lectures and workshops on Your Focus Zone, click here.