FOCUS: Tric ks for Con centration
Life speeds by pretty quick. Cars, bikes, trains, birds, bees, comets, rockets - everything’s zooming by at the speed of the
universe. Are we as humans supposed to be moving this fast? Smart phone, ringtone, deadline, train ride, freeway, zip line. How in the
heck are we supposed to keep up? Well, by slowing down of course. The following exercises and mental tricks can help ease the mind,
improve concentration, and help you to be more productive and effective in achieving your goals. These tricks and exercises are
inspired by my brother who has dedicated his life to being a physical fitness instructor, the numerous books written by qi gong master
Mantak Chia, and the many others who have guided me and challenged me to concentrate on the more important things in life.
1. Sleep: Get plenty of rest. Letting the body and mind sleep helps it to recover from a hard day’s work.
2. Physical Exercise
2.1.
Qi Gong: Learn Mantak Chia’s teachings on the inner smile and microcosmic orbit.
2.2.
Soccer - Team sports can help to improve social relationships, encourage collaboration, can unite rivalrous
factions, and teach loyalty, respect, and good sportsmanship.
3. Mental Exercise
3.1.
Meditation - Deep breathing, concentration, relaxation. The more one can focus the more likely they will be
able to see something through to the end, whether it be a political or social issue, or a personal one.
3.2.
Study - Knowledge, spiritualism, ideology, philosophy, culture, etc. Reading can help one to escape from reality
while at the same time delivering reality-based information. Study all aspects of the issues (i.e. right/
left/asymmetrical politics), discover truth through rigorous examination of different perspectives, and
increase one’s mental capacity to learn in more complex ways.
3.3.
Puzzles - Helps overcome confusion & deception. Can help to improve logical & rational thinking, problem
solving, and multi-step analytical thinking skills.
4. Emotive Exercises
4.1 Love - Unconditional for all.
5. Creative Exercises
4.1 Art - We’re a creative species. We wouldn’t be here if that wasn’t true. Express yourself and breathe the rhythm of
life. The universe demands no less!
The art on this page comes courtesy of Randy Rambo, an art
student at the University of Hawaii at Hilo. The center-middle
piece is titled “Louis-S-Olive Bathroom” and the work to the left is
called “Yellow Eye.”
To see more of Randy's work visit flickr.com/randyrambo
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