10 Best Books on Increasing Concentration for Work and Study!
Hey you - yeah, you with the wandering attention span! Let's be real for a minute, it's tough to maintain steadfast concentration at work or during study hours, right? Mind jumping from emails to Facebook, to daydreaming about your next vacation? Trust me, we've all been there. However, what if there was an antidote to this wandering mind syndrome hidden in the realms of the written word?
This isn't about magical mantras or pipedream pseudoscience. I'm talking about genuine, evidence-backed knowledge distilled into the 10 best books on the market. Books that delve into brain science, mindfulness, the art of unfettered focus, and resources to ward off the dreaded demons of distraction.
These aren't just theoretical poppycock either. Many of the authors share tangible techniques to surge productivity, run by world-class scientists, scholars, entrepreneurs, and luminaries who've walked the talk and mastered the mechanisms of maintaining concentration amidst chaos. So whether you're a student grappling with gargantuan syllabi, a professional peddling against project pressures, or simply someone looking to inject a little more focus into daily life, these pearls of printed wisdom are your ticket to a steadfast, unwavering mind. Let's hone that focus, shall we?
『Indistractable』
"Indistractable provides a framework that will deliver the focus you need to get results." —James Clear, author of Atomic Habits "If you value your time, your focus, or your relationships, this book is essential reading. I'm putting these ideas into practice." —Jonathan Haidt, author of The Righteous Mind National Bestseller Winner of the Outstanding Works of Literature (OWL) Award Included in the Top 5 Best Personal Development Books of the Year by Audible Included in the Top 20 Best Business and Leadership Books of the Year by Amazon Featured in The Amazon Book Review Newsletter, January 2020 Goodreads Best Science & Technology of 2019 Finalist You sit down at your desk to work on an important project, but a notification on your phone interrupts your morning. Later, as you're about to get back to work, a colleague taps you on the shoulder to chat. At home, screens get in the way of quality time with your family. Another day goes by, and once again, your most important personal and professional goals are put on hold. What would be possible if you followed through on your best intentions? What could you accomplish if you could stay focused? What if you had the power to become "indistractable?" International bestselling author, former Stanford lecturer, and behavioral design expert, Nir Eyal, wrote Silicon Valley's handbook for making technology habit-forming. Five years after publishing Hooked, Eyal reveals distraction's Achilles' heel in his groundbreaking new book. In Indistractable, Eyal reveals the hidden psychology driving us to distraction. He describes why solving the problem is not as simple as swearing off our devices: Abstinence is impractical and often makes us want more. Eyal lays bare the secret of finally doing what you say you will do with a four-step, research-backed model. Indistractable reveals the key to getting the best out of technology, without letting it get the best of us. Inside, Eyal overturns conventional wisdom and reveals: • Why distraction at work is a symptom of a dysfunctional company culture—and how to fix it • What really drives human behavior and why "time management is pain management" • Why your relationships (and your sex life) depend on you becoming indistractable • How to raise indistractable children in an increasingly distracting world Empowering and optimistic, Indistractable provides practical, novel techniques to control your time and attention—helping you live the life you really want.
Author | Nir Eyal |
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Price | $12.99 |
Publisher | BenBella Books |
Release Date | Sep 10, 2019 |
Source | Google Books |
『Focus』
For more than two decades, psychologist and journalist Daniel Goleman has been scouting the leading edge of the human sciences for what's new, surprising, and important. In Focus, he delves into the science of attention in all its varieties, presenting a long overdue discussion of this little-noticed and under-rated mental asset that matters enormously for how we navigate life. Goleman boils down attention research into a three parts: inner, other, and outer focus. Goleman shows why high-achievers need all three kinds of focus, as demonstrated by rich case studies from fields as diverse as competitive sports, education, the arts, and business. Those who excel rely on what Goleman calls Smart Practices such as mindfulness meditation, focused preparation and recovery, positive emotions and connections, and mental 'prosthetics' that help them improve habits, add new skills, and sustain excellence. Combining cutting-edge research with practical findings, Focus reveals what distinguishes experts from amateurs and stars from average performers.
Author | Daniel Goleman |
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Price | unknown |
Publisher | |
Release Date | Oct 01, 2014 |
Source | Google Books |
『Flow』
“Csikszentmihalyi arrives at an insight that many of us can intuitively grasp, despite our insistent (and culturally supported) denial of this truth. That is, it is not what happens to us that determines our happiness, but the manner in which we make sense of that reality. . . . The manner in which Csikszentmihalyi integrates research on consciousness, personal psychology and spirituality is illuminating.” —Los Angeles Times Book Review The bestselling classic that holds the key to unlocking meaning, creativity, peak performance, and true happiness. Legendary psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi's famous investigations of "optimal experience" have revealed that what makes an experience genuinely satisfying is a state of consciousness called flow. During flow, people typically experience deep enjoyment, creativity, and a total involvement with life. In this new edition of his groundbreaking classic work, Csikszentmihalyi ("the leading researcher into ‘flow states’" —Newsweek) demonstrates the ways this positive state can be controlled, not just left to chance. Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience teaches how, by ordering the information that enters our consciousness, we can discover true happiness, unlock our potential, and greatly improve the quality of our lives.
Author | Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi |
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Price | unknown |
Publisher | Harper Collins |
Release Date | Oct 13, 2009 |
Source | Google Books |
『Deep Work』
AN AMAZON BEST BOOK OF 2O16 PICK IN BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP WALL STREET JOURNAL BUSINESS BESTSELLER A BUSINESS BOOK OF THE WEEK AT 800-CEO-READ Master one of our economy’s most rare skills and achieve groundbreaking results with this “exciting” book (Daniel H. Pink) from an “exceptional” author (New York Times Book Review). Deep work is the ability to focus without distraction on a cognitively demanding task. It's a skill that allows you to quickly master complicated information and produce better results in less time. Deep Work will make you better at what you do and provide the sense of true fulfillment that comes from craftsmanship. In short, deep work is like a super power in our increasingly competitive twenty-first century economy. And yet, most people have lost the ability to go deep-spending their days instead in a frantic blur of e-mail and social media, not even realizing there's a better way. In Deep Work, author and professor Cal Newport flips the narrative on impact in a connected age. Instead of arguing distraction is bad, he instead celebrates the power of its opposite. Dividing this book into two parts, he first makes the case that in almost any profession, cultivating a deep work ethic will produce massive benefits. He then presents a rigorous training regimen, presented as a series of four "rules," for transforming your mind and habits to support this skill. 1. Work Deeply 2. Embrace Boredom 3. Quit Social Media 4. Drain the Shallows A mix of cultural criticism and actionable advice, Deep Work takes the reader on a journey through memorable stories-from Carl Jung building a stone tower in the woods to focus his mind, to a social media pioneer buying a round-trip business class ticket to Tokyo to write a book free from distraction in the air-and no-nonsense advice, such as the claim that most serious professionals should quit social media and that you should practice being bored. Deep Work is an indispensable guide to anyone seeking focused success in a distracted world.
Author | Cal Newport |
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Price | $15.99 |
Publisher | Grand Central Publishing |
Release Date | Jan 05, 2016 |
Source | Google Books |
『Hyperfocus』
A practical guide to managing your attention--the most powerful resource you have to get stuff done, become more creative, and live a meaningful life Our attention has never been as overwhelmed as it is today. Many of us recognize that our brains struggle to multitask. Despite this, we feel compelled to do so anyway while we fill each moment of our lives to the brim with mindless distraction. Hyperfocus provides profound insights into how you can best take charge of your attention to achieve a greater sense of purpose and productivity throughout the day. The most recent neuroscientific research reveals that our brain has two powerful modes that can be unlocked when we use our attention effectively: a focused mode (hyperfocus), which is the foundation for being highly productive, and a creative mode (scatterfocus), which enables us to connect ideas in novel ways. Hyperfocus helps you access each of the two mental modes so you can concentrate more deeply, think more clearly, and work and live more deliberately every day. Chris Bailey examines such topics such as: • identifying and dealing with the four key types of distraction and interruption; • establishing a clear physical and mental environment in which to work; • controlling motivation and working fewer hours to become more productive; • taking time-outs with intention; • multitasking strategically; and • learning when to pay attention and when to let your mind wander wherever it wants to. By transforming how you think about your attention, Hyperfocus reveals that the more effectively you learn to take charge of it, the better you'll be able to manage every aspect of your life.
Author | Chris Bailey |
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Price | $11.99 |
Publisher | Penguin |
Release Date | Aug 28, 2018 |
Source | Google Books |
『Your Brain at Work, Revised and Updated』
A researcher and consultant burrows deep inside the heads of one modern two-career couple to examine how each partner processes the workday—revealing how a more nuanced understanding of the brain can allow us to better organize, prioritize, recall, and sort our daily lives. Emily and Paul are the parents of two young children, and professionals with different careers. Emily is the newly promoted vice president of marketing at a large corporation; Paul works from home or from clients' offices as an independent IT consultant. Their days are filled with a bewildering blizzard of emails, phone calls, more emails, meetings, projects, proposals, and plans. Just staying ahead of the storm has become a seemingly insurmountable task. In Your Brain at Work, Dr. David Rock goes inside Emily and Paul's brains to see how they function as each attempts to sort, prioritize, organize, and act on the vast quantities of information they receive in one typical day. Dr. Rock is an expert on how the brain functions in a work setting. By analyzing what is going on in their heads, he offers solutions Emily and Paul (and all of us) can use to survive and thrive in today's hyperbusy work environment—and still feel energized and accomplished at the end of the day. In Your Brain at Work, Dr. Rock explores issues such as: why our brains feel so taxed, and how to maximize our mental resources why it's so hard to focus, and how to better manage distractions how to maximize the chance of finding insights to solve seemingly insurmountable problems how to keep your cool in any situation, so that you can make the best decisions possible how to collaborate more effectively with others why providing feedback is so difficult, and how to make it easier how to be more effective at changing other people's behavior and much more.
Author | David Rock |
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Price | $21.99 |
Publisher | HarperCollins |
Release Date | Aug 11, 2020 |
Source | Google Books |
『Getting Things Done』
The book Lifehack calls "The Bible of business and personal productivity." "A completely revised and updated edition of the blockbuster bestseller from 'the personal productivity guru'"—Fast Company Since it was first published almost fifteen years ago, David Allen’s Getting Things Done has become one of the most influential business books of its era, and the ultimate book on personal organization. “GTD” is now shorthand for an entire way of approaching professional and personal tasks, and has spawned an entire culture of websites, organizational tools, seminars, and offshoots. Allen has rewritten the book from start to finish, tweaking his classic text with important perspectives on the new workplace, and adding material that will make the book fresh and relevant for years to come. This new edition of Getting Things Done will be welcomed not only by its hundreds of thousands of existing fans but also by a whole new generation eager to adopt its proven principles.
Author | David Allen |
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Price | $13.99 |
Publisher | Penguin |
Release Date | Mar 17, 2015 |
Source | Google Books |
『Essentialism』
THE LIFE-CHANGING NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • MORE THAN TWO MILLION COPIES SOLD • Now in a 10th anniversary edition featuring a new introduction and bonus 21-day challenge. “Essentialism holds the keys to solving one of the great puzzles of life: How can we do less but accomplish more?”—Adam Grant, bestselling author of Think Again Essentialism isn’t about getting more done in less time. It’s about getting only the right things done. Have you ever found yourself stretched too thin? Are you often busy but not productive? Do you feel like your time is constantly being hijacked? If you answered yes to any of these, the way out is the Way of the Essentialist. Essentialism is more than a time-management technique. It is a systematic discipline for discerning what is absolutely essential, then eliminating everything that is not, so we can make the highest possible contribution toward the things that really matter. By forcing us to apply more selective criteria for where to spend our precious time and energy, the disciplined pursuit of less empowers us to reclaim control of our own choices, instead of giving others the implicit permission to choose for us. Essentialism is not one more thing to do. It’s a whole new way of doing less, but better, in every area of our lives. Join the millions of people who have used Essentialism to change their outlook on the world.
Author | Greg McKeown |
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Price | unknown |
Publisher | Crown Currency |
Release Date | Dec 29, 2020 |
Source | Google Books |
『The 80/20 Principle, Third Edition』
Be more effective with less effort by learning how to identify and leverage the 80/20 principle: that 80 percent of all our results in business and in life stem from a mere 20 percent of our efforts. The 80/20 principle is one of the great secrets of highly effective people and organizations. Did you know, for example, that 20 percent of customers account for 80 percent of revenues? That 20 percent of our time accounts for 80 percent of the work we accomplish? The 80/20 Principle shows how we can achieve much more with much less effort, time, and resources, simply by identifying and focusing our efforts on the 20 percent that really counts. Although the 80/20 principle has long influenced today's business world, author Richard Koch reveals how the principle works and shows how we can use it in a systematic and practical way to vastly increase our effectiveness, and improve our careers and our companies. The unspoken corollary to the 80/20 principle is that little of what we spend our time on actually counts. But by concentrating on those things that do, we can unlock the enormous potential of the magic 20 percent, and transform our effectiveness in our jobs, our careers, our businesses, and our lives.
Author | Richard Koch |
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Price | $12.99 |
Publisher | Crown Currency |
Release Date | Nov 09, 2011 |
Source | Google Books |
『The ONE Thing』
• More than 500 appearances on national bestseller lists • #1 Wall Street Journal, New York Times, and USA Today • Won 12 book awards • Translated into 35 languages • Voted Top 100 Business Book of All Time on Goodreads People are using this simple, powerful concept to focus on what matters most in their personal and work lives. Companies are helping their employees be more productive with study groups, training, and coaching. Sales teams are boosting sales. Churches are conducting classes and recommending for their members. By focusing their energy on one thing at a time people are living more rewarding lives by building their careers, strengthening their finances, losing weight and getting in shape, deepening their faith, and nurturing stronger marriages and personal relationships. YOU WANT LESS. You want fewer distractions and less on your plate. The daily barrage of e-mails, texts, tweets, messages, and meetings distract you and stress you out. The simultaneous demands of work and family are taking a toll. And what's the cost? Second-rate work, missed deadlines, smaller paychecks, fewer promotions--and lots of stress. AND YOU WANT MORE. You want more productivity from your work. More income for a better lifestyle. You want more satisfaction from life, and more time for yourself, your family, and your friends. NOW YOU CAN HAVE BOTH — LESS AND MORE. In The ONE Thing, you'll learn to * cut through the clutter * achieve better results in less time * build momentum toward your goal* dial down the stress * overcome that overwhelmed feeling * revive your energy * stay on track * master what matters to you The ONE Thing delivers extraordinary results in every area of your life--work, personal, family, and spiritual. WHAT'S YOUR ONE THING?
Author | Gary Keller/Jay Papasan |
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Price | unknown |
Publisher | Bard Press |
Release Date | Apr 01, 2013 |
Source | Google Books |
So there you have it, folks! A comprehensive list of some truly amazing books that are tried and tested to boost your focus for your work or a daunting study session. Remember, the secret to success isn't hidden in magic formulas, but in the dedication and determination - which are both enhanced through improved concentration. These books dwell deep into this concept, bringing out your inner prowess to remain focused, organized and productive. They are not only great aids in keeping you rooted in the task at hand, but they also inspire you to develop a positive approach towards any task that comes your way. Even if you're an artist trying to create a masterpiece or an athlete aiming for the gold, concentration is the key! It's time to step up your A-game, dive into these magical realms of knowledge, get inspired and stay focused like never before. Just like Rome wasn't built in a day, the journey to heightened focus and concentration is a journey, my friends. And guess what? With these books, that journey just got a little bit easier.
Enjoy the journey, and remember, happy learning equals effective learning!
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