cultivating focus throughout your day

Let me start off by saying… I am not that girl who has it all together, has a perfect life, and always gets it right… I actually am absolutely NOT that hahaha. However, I am a friend who has struggled with focus since I was really young (I was diagnosed with ADD in first grade). I took medicine throughout my school years, but they never made my body feel right, if ya know what I mean. Most of them made me need a 3PM nap and I just knew I didn’t want that long term. BUT, once I graduated college, I also knew I’d have a challenge in front of me to get all the things done all the time, just because of the tendency of my brain to always want to jump tasks, thoughts, etc. In my current life, I work from home full time, run a side business, and am home with Shepard (my baby). Not to mention the dishes that call my name in the random pockets of the day or laundry I can’t let sit around hahah.

That to say, it has taken a lot of discipline to get in a rhythm, not just as an adult with a full time job, but also as a WFH mom! I’ve been through all the tips on how to focus better, especially since I don’t take medicine anymore.

Here are the things that have helped me the most.

start the day off right.

Do you have a morning routine? It doesn’t have to be super long, but just a few things to help center your brain before jumping into a work day. For me, it’s usually opening the blinds, pumping the diffusers, making my smoothie, and *if I’m lucky*, reading for a few minutes. It probably takes me 20 minutes to all of those things, but by the time I’m done, my brain knows it’s ready to get the day rollin. That just keeps me motivated to not just dilly dally (lol) with my time. Bonus points if you can get a workout (even just a walk) in before starting the day, or a task. When I walk on my treadmill while I’m at my desk, that is peak productivity for my brain! But, again, it definitely doesn’t have to be complicated. If you need help establishing more routine in your life, join my free 10-week Rhythm Reboot Workshop!

supplements & nutrition.

Okay, I may have stopped medicine, but I have found that there are tons of ways to naturally support your focus and mind clarity throughout the day. I’ve tried a bunch over the years, but these are the ones that have stuck with me.

1. Focus supplements. I have been taking these and LOVE them. They’re VitB based, and seriously make me feel like I can lock in on a task instead of my brain going 100MPH. I would definitely start here!
2. Load up on nutrients at the front of your day. Say what you want about intermittent fasting, which I did for two years, but my brain feels so much better when I start the day off with nutrients up front. Get in a rhythm of a morning smoothie with some good greens, protein, yogurt, OJ, whatever you want! It is so much better than starting your day off with the coffee jitters.
3. Make a focus roller and/or diffuser blend. Vetiver and peppermint are known to be oils that help with focus. I have these in a roller with orange (for fruity vibes) and it’s great to have when I sit down at my desk to hone in on a task. Not only that, but because smell is associated with the olfactory system, when you make a habit of using a roller in a certain setting, like when you go to work, your brain will start to click that that means it’s time to focus. How cool is that!
4. Other supplements. Okay, this is coming from someone who leans the line of needing to keep up with bloodwork because I have had many seasons of life where I’m deficient in certain vitamins/minerals that absolutely results in brain fog. If you have brain fog and suspect you could be lacking something, I would look into trying iron (this one doesn’t hurt your stomach), vitamin D, and vitamin B12. Not giving medical advice here, it is just what I’ve seen true for myself and have learned from a bunch of books and podcasts that many people in America lack these! You will feel like a new person once the fog disappears.

make lists & plan out time blocks.

I feel like this one comes up a lot in articles with tips, but it’s true. I work best when I tell myself “okay I am going to do XYZ task from 2 – 3 PM today.”… and stick to it. I personally find myself doing 10 mini tasks (especially since I’m home and I can make an excuse to get something done) to avoid the one thing I have to do, if I’m not being accountable.

Now, if something pops into my head while I’m honing in on a single task, I will immediately write it in my phone. I have a running to-do list for the day in my phone so that I don’t have to worry about forgetting those little thoughts that pop up while I’m attempting to focus on something specific. I also love my passion planner! I am not naturally a list-maker or planner-user, but being in that practice has resulted in a much less-stressed me. It took a lot of forgotten tasks in college to learn that lesson. At least now, I’m not worrying about forgetting something! That way, when I finish whatever project I am working on, I can take a 15 minute break and get a bunch of those mini tasks done, too!

create a clean space.

Similar to what I was saying about having those 10 mini tasks I’m tempted with focusing on to procrastinate other work, if your workspace is messy, it will be hard to focus on the task at hand. Clear the coffee mugs, don’t work in front of the TV or in bed, and try keeping the distractions to a minimum.

dedicate times to stay off your phone.

…Which leads me to this. Hide your phone. Or at least, put it in the other room with the ringer on for phone calls, if you’re worried about it. It’s so much easier to stay off your phone when it isn’t at arm’s reach. The Focus settings on iPhones now are also super good! I just know for me, if my phone is nearby, without even realizing it, I will probably open it a few times and somehow end up on IG scrolling or on a random website. When I put it away or in the other room, it’s a great inspiration to get my task done. 5 minute break afterwards, sure!

get in a flow.

At the end of the day, I think it’s important to make a flow with your day. So you know what to expect. I realize, you may be reading this and may not work at home, and that’s totally cool. Similar to what I was saying about time blocking, having a general idea of how you want the day to go (Like: From 10-12 I will do these three tasks. Then I’ll take a break to do these three personal tasks. Then I can fit a small workout in. Etc), it gets a lot easier to feel confident in how your days can go when you’re getting your flow up for success. Now, if you have a baby at home with you like I do, this is a different story to a big extent. We both know Shepard makes the rules around here, not me! Hahah, I’ll get into my thoughts on that another day. It’s great.

At the end of the day, most of this comes down to being accountable to yourself. You need to remember the supplements, wake up 20 minutes earlier for your routine, purpose time-block windows, get into a rhythm of making actual brain-dump lists, etc. BUT, your brain will thank you. I used to live in SUCH constant chaos (even if just in my head), before I started getting serious about disciplining myself a bit. It’s crazy how much a little structure around yourself can actually give you a lot of freedom, and free up stress in your life.