Why is it difficult to maintain focus for long periods of time but very easy to spend a whole day doing essentially nothing (video-games, watching videos etc)?
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Because you’re focusing on remaining focused, instead of on the task at hand. Try immersing yourself in your work next time, it’ll be easier.
Because video games and movies are tuned to be as easy to “consume” by the brain as possible. There’s movement, sound, light, language so there’s always something to grab (and keep) your attention. And they all reinforce each other. Proof of how easy it is for our brains to consume movies is how easy it is for you to remember and tell the plot and many details of a movie many weeks later even if you see it only once. If you have trouble focusing on a task, it is either too easy or too difficult for your brain to process at peak efficiency. Simple, repetitive tasks are too easy to process and once you start resorting to using muscle memory, the brain’s attention will slip.
Its passive attention vs active attention, plus there arnt any real consequences to losing a game and youre having fun, I hope.
Hell I don’t know how to pay attention to just one thing at a time. I’m an amazing multi tasker. I literally can literally read a book listen to music and be able to sing the songs and keep up with where I am in the book. Also I’m able to walk without looking up and not running into anything. It used to be my go to thing in high school except i wouldn’t be singing in the hallways lol.
Interest.
It just boils down to genuine interest plus instant rewards in the game (,videos etc). Immersing oneself in any of these takes a lot of concentration too, we just don’t realize it because we enjoy every moment of it.
Same thing goes for people who enjoy other mentally intensive tasks eg: coding, maths, science. They enjoy every second of it, they feel rewarded when they solve the small portions of the big problems they’re trying to solve – they DO end up spending hours and don’t feel as tired.
You are not doing “nothing”, it’s not productive per society’s definition but games, videos, other forms of entertainment require just as much of concentration/focus – people have died of exhaustion by playing games for longer times 🙂
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