To help your child become an autonomous and resilient learner:
Teach him how to refocus his brain by avoiding multitasking.
This month, I will focus on tips for building resilience and boosting focus, drive and energy, based on an approach developed by Olympian and leadership coach Bonnie St. John, and CEO and seasoned entertainment executive coach Allen P. Haines. We are living in a world in which we have many competing demands on our time, and St. John and Haines have created a program that helps people thrive in such a challenging environment.
Multitasking is a trap that most of us fall into to get through everything we have to accomplish in a day. In their book Micro-Resilience, St. John and Haines explain that performing several mentally-demanding tasks at once, instead of focusing on one at a time, results in diminished concentration, effectiveness, and recall. So, although we may have the impression that we are getting more done by working on several tasks simultaneously, the reality is that we are working less efficiently and are exhausting our energy and creativity.
Here are a few techniques that Haines and St. John propose to minimize disruptions and maximise concentration:
Create a “zone” for completing important tasks that require accuracy, quality and creativity
- Block times in your daily schedule for completing specific tasks that require you to focus.
- Establish a quiet location where you can go to complete these tasks.
- Communicate clearly with your family and colleagues so they know when they can interrupt you while you are in your “zone”.
- Cancel your alerts and silence your phone when you are in your “zone”.