Concentration Helps the Individual Successfully Accomplish More Tasks in Less Time

It is frequently noted that certain individuals seem to accomplish more, and despite enormous commitments, they seem ready to take on more and do even more than they are doing. On the other hand, there are individuals who seem to have a low threshold of action and they seem to never have the time to take on anything else. The difference is found in the ability to concentrate, focus one’s time and attention, and organize the action to use time optimally. Planning is the first step in taking on more projects. Many things can actually be interwoven together without breaking the concentration. There is no reason why an individual cannot actually manage multiple activities concurrently through the use of concentration. For example, certain things need input from others such as additional information or context. Those who have learned how to concentrate can immediately spot the deficiencies in the factual background needed and set things in motion to acquire that information while they turn their immediate attention to the next task at hand. After giving full and complete concentrated focus on that task, they find that the next task is ready to be undertaken, as the needed facts or materials have been assembled.

So much time and energy gets wasted in the distractions that it sets back the speed and accuracy of all work that is undertaken. Concentration amplifies the ‘signal’ while reducing the ‘noise’ in the focus of the energy, thereby ensuring that projects are accomplished correctly and in a timely manner. In today’s world, concentration is difficult to achieve with the constant interruptions due to telephone, social media, internet, and personal interactions that do not acknowledge boundaries generally. The individual who has learned how to concentrate also creates the necessary framework and boundaries to minimize disruptions.
Concentration involves both a ‘negative’ and a ‘positive’ aspect. The negative aspect is one that excludes the distractions and interruptions. The positive aspect is one that focuses the attention ‘like a laser beam’ on what needs to be accomplished.

The Mother observes: “When you work, if you are able to concentrate, you can do absolutely in ten minutes what would otherwise take you one hour. If you want to gain time, learn to concentrate. It is through attention that one can do things quickly and one does them much better. If you have a task that should take you half an hour — I don’t say if you have to write for half an hour of course — but if you have to think and your mind is floating about, if you are thinking not only of what you are doing but also of what you have done and of what you will have to do and of your other subjects, all that makes you lose thrice as much time as you need to do your task. When you have too much to do, you must learn how to concentrate exclusively on what you are doing, with an intensity in your attention, and you can do in ten minutes what would otherwise take you one hour.”

Sri Aurobindo and the Mother, Powers Within, Chapter IV Concentration, pg. 42