The Clock Game
How Many Things Are You Thinking About At Any Given Moment?
You’ve got 20 things going through your head, you’re feeling tense, slightly on edge, constantly jumping among tasks, and…
NOTHING IS GETTING DONE!
On top of that, now you’re reading some guy’s blog that is asking you to think about how many things you’re thinking about…
At any point in your typical day, your mind has been racing for a while and you don’t know how to stop it and get yourself back on track, which just leads to more frustration, tension, and “noise” in your mind.
What we are talking about here is regaining attention.
And regaining it fast.
Formally, attention is defined as the “cognitive process of selectively concentrating on one aspect of the environment while ignoring other things”.
This a huge field of study in a number of areas where researchers use cool terms like:
neurons
synaptic pathways
working memory
bottom-up processing
top-down processing
and vigilance.
This stuff makes for great reading if you are interested in cognition, neuroscience…
or are looking to cure your insomnia.
The rest of us just want to be able to focus better during the course of the day.
So how can you mentally get back on track or stay on track with all the “noise” around you during the course of your day?
What you basically want to do is figure out a way to regain visual and auditory attention to whatever it is that you want/need to focus on.
In English – you want to be able to minimize the “noise” in your mind when you are looking at or listening to something or someone.
Can you train yourself to do this?
Yes
How?
The Clock Game
It takes three minutes and all you need is a clock (or watch) with a second hand.
It is very simple to practice. And I would practice it as often as possible.
Here is what you do:
1. Get yourself somewhere were there is a relatively decent amount of activity and a
clock with a second hand.
Some common places people have used are the: office,
train station, cafeteria, restaurant, library, building lobby, mall, coffee shop.
[Note: a clock hanging on a wall is your primary option. If that’s not available then use a wrist watch, clock on your smart phone, or tablet]
2. Focus on the second hand of the clock as it ticks each second around the clock.
When the second hand gets to 12 all I want you to focus on is that second hand.
Keep your eyes on it.
Watch it for every tick.
At the same time listen only to the second hand – nothing else. Focus on it to
the point where you feel like you can hear it tick each second.
Do this until the second hand arrives back at the 12.
3. Once the second hand reaches the 12 continue staring at the clock. This time I
want you to notice everything that is going on around you:
sounds
conversations
people walking
doors opening
phones ringing…
Keeping your eyes on the clock – notice the lights, the smells, the colors around
you
Keep noticing as much as you can around you until the second hand reaches 12
4. Once the second hand reaches 12 again, repeat Step 2. Focus on the second hand
of the clock as it ticks each second around the clock.
When the second hand gets to 12 all I want you to focus on is that second hand.
Keep your eyes on it.
Watch it for every tick.
At the same time listen only to the second hand – nothing else.
Focus on it to the point where you feel like you can hear it tick each second.
Do this until the second hand arrives back at the 12.
5. Once the second hand reaches the 12 you can stop staring at the clock.
6. Now try to remember as much information from what was going on around you in Step 3 as possible.
It is not necessary, but if you want, write everything down that you remember. I have known people who keep a “log” of their practices to see how they progress the more they practice.
The key here is NOT to cheat during Step 4 and simply rehearse everything in your head that you noticed during Step 3 when your sole focus should be on the second hand of the clock.
If you cheat during Step 4, you’re simply cheating yourself of the huge improvements in your ability to regain your attention that result from practicing this Action regularly.
There is no high score here or expert range.
The purpose of this exercise is to learn that YOU can train you mind to regain attention whenever you want it to.
I have personally been practicing this action regularly for over 15 years because being able to notice that your focus is off and then having the ability to regain it are vital to everything that you do during the course of your day.
