How to be more effective and less stressed in an age of distractions:

The age of Distractions

When you think you multi-task, you are actually just switching from one task to another.
And there is a cognitive and emotional cost in doing so!

In order to be more effective and less stressed: 

Focus on NOW

Plan:

                         

You need to know where you are heading, so prioritise according to when you are writing the test and what you need to know for it. Plan on your To Do Today (see picture).

Manage time:

Set your timer for 30 min for your first session and GO!

During the 25 min you can't be interrupted!

 "Learning information while multi-tasking causes the new information to go to the wrong part of the brain. If students study and watch TV at the same time, for example, the information from their schoolwork goes into the striatum, a region specialised for storing new procedures and skills, not facts and ideas. Without the distraction of TV, the information goes into the hippocampus, where it is organised and categorised in a variety of ways, making it easier to retrieve.

Cell phones too, are a distraction. Stop and know it is a recipe for addiction: you receive a text, and that activates your novelty centres. You respond and feel rewarded for having completed a task (even though that task was entirely unknown to you 15 seconds earlier). Each of those delivers a shot of dopamine as your limbic system cries out “More! More! Give me more!”

 

Sustain your focus on your learning material until the last 5 min before your timer rings - use the 5 min. for relaxation. Sustaining diffusing your brain...

The timer's ring calls you back and activates your next session.

For more information on related matters see Betterhelp.com/advice/stress/