What do I mean by that?!

I mean that you’re not able to focus on anything for more than a few seconds at a time before your attention wanders away, and you aren’t able to keep it from wandering even if you try.

I totally didn’t believe this at first.
You probably don’t either, so I’m going to give you an example and a simple exercise to test it out for yourself.

— Definitely don’t just believe this craziness! Find out for yourself! —

Then I’ll share why it might matter to you, and what you can do about it.

— Ok, first up, an example. —

Have you ever been listening to someone and something they said reminded you of something else? …
“Email!'” you start thinking, “Oh no! Did I send that email?! Oh, crud! I forgot! Ok, first thing in the morning!” You finish this thought, and then return your attention to the person in front of you… and they’re still talking. Oops.

You don’t know what you’ve missed, because you were busy thinking about email. And if you’re like me, you hope they keep talking so that you can try and figure out what you missed! 
Not a comfortable or respectful place to be (of self or other).

Everyone can relate to this. I’ve not yet had a single person who couldn’t.
Why? Because we aren’t in control of our attention! Even if we are talking to a best friend, boss/client, lover or beloved child we still do this! Yikes!

— Next, an experiment to test out your attention control for yourself —

When I heard about this, I thought, “But that’s silly! I can watch a movie for 2 hours and not have my thoughts wander away!”

Well, sure you’re able to focus on movies, TV/Netflix shows, Facebook, YouTube, etc easily! And, my friend, those things are designed to grab your attention and keep it – over and over and over again. Ever wondered why these things are constantly changing every 3-7 seconds? (New angle, new sound, new topic, etc.) That’s because they know that modern consumerist humans have the attention span of gnats, so they program that way!

Try this:

Focus on your breath, and only on your breath, for 3 minutes. Don’t let your attention wander to anything else. 
I can guarantee you that you can’t do it.
(If you can PLEASE email me! I want to meet you! you’ll be the first person I’ve ever met that can! And my first question, will be, how long can you focus? Now, back to 99.9999% of us…)

Even if I promise you 1 billion dollars or to meet the person of your dreams, you won’t be able to.
Seriously, test it out for yourself. (It’ll only take 3 minutes.)

It’s crazy, right?!
You can’t control your attention, and keep your mind from wandering away, for just 3 minutes.

— Why you might care and what to do about it. —

So why do you care? 
Well, maybe you don’t. 
But if you do, if you want to be able to control your attention, to direct your focus towards what ever you’re interested in for extended periods of time, then mindfulness is a great tool for helping with that.

Part of the point of mindfulness is to be able to focus our attention for long periods of time, first so that we’re aware of what’s happening in front of us (hello person speaking to me!). We want to be able to enjoy our lives!… The birthday party or wedding we’re at, the moments with our loved ones, our vacations, etc. Otherwise we’re only partly there and the rest of the time we’ve wandered away in our minds… lost in thought.

There are many ways to regain this ability. If you do anything that asks for your attention (that doesn’t cultivate a gnat like attention span) you can commit to paying attention for longer and longer amounts of time. (Start with 30 seconds and work your way up!) Mindfulness is one great way to do this, and regaining focus is just one of the many benefits!

For free guided mindfulness practices, see ElenaFoucher.com/mindfulness