Q. I lack concentration and idle thoughts often come across my mind. I sometimes want to just give up on my studies. How can I develop concentration as a habit in studying? Let me know specific ways to focus on my studies.


A. If you make it a habit to sit in one place and concentrate on your studies, it will be much easier to study. Though varied from person to person, it usually takes 14 days for a person to form a habit. If you practice sitting at the desk and studying even for a short while, for two full weeks, you will begin to develop the habit of studying. As time passes, you will have more concentration power and your studying will take off like it had wings.
Anybody can demonstrate an amazing power to concentrate when they do something they like and it is enjoyable for them. Suppose you watch a great movie for 3 hours with excitement. You would remember the names of lead characters and the story to a great extent. It is similar for your studies. Therefore, believe in your potential, rely on God, and follow the tips below.


Action 1 Clean your room and confess with faith!

When you go into your studying room, you should clean your room and straighten up your desk first. It is also good to remove the things that you touch or see often. The cell phone is the number one object to remove from your sight.
There is a research conducted by Dr. Glenn Wilson of University of London, on the effects that the signal of arrival of electric information has on processing the information. It says while doing a certain work, if you hear the sound of the arrival of text message, check it, and reply, the functioning intelligent quotient drops by about 10 points. In case of elementary school students, if they check or reply to the text messages in the middle of studying, it takes average 5 minutes for them to focus on their studies again. It could take 10 or 15 minutes, or even more depending on what the text messages are about. It will make concentrating on your studies again very difficult. Therefore, it would be advisable that you remove the cell phone from your sight when studying.
After getting rid of the things that disturb your studies, sit at the desk and say out loud, "With the strength of the Lord, I can do it!" It will be done as you confess with faith.


Action 2 Make your study plan, but do not be overly ambitious!

Now, you can make your weekly study plan. Here, you should not be too ambitious. This is because you will feel bad and even get tired of studying if you do not keep doing things on schedule. You have to set the volume of studying material and timeline within your own limits.
Also, it is better to have specific plans to study. It will be very helpful to make your own yearly, monthly, and weekly plan and put them on the wall before you. If you have this kind of plan, you won't feel you don't know what to do when you sit at the desk to study. Thus, it is better for you to set a goal and make a habit of studying to achieve the goal.


Action 3 After praying with all your heart, follow your study plan!

Before you begin to study, pray for a little while on your knees. You can pray with all your heart and earnestly for 10 to 30 minutes, as long as you can. Then, your thoughts and mind will be calm and steady. Now, you can just sit at the desk and begin to follow your study plan.
At first, you might be able to concentrate only for a short period of time. But the important thing is that you must never give up. With each successive day, no matter what you have been doing, you have to stop whatever it is and go to study at the fixed time. As you keep the promise with yourself for one day and two days, then you can also control your mind.


Action 4 Drive away idle thoughts and concentrate on your studies!

Sometimes, even though you sit at the desk to keep your promises, you might not be able to concentrate because of idle thoughts. Then, I suggest you do the following. You write down the things that come into your mind. If you try not to have idle thoughts, they come into your mind more. This is called, "rebound effect." It is a concept that a psychologist called Wagner developed.
Rather than trying to suppress your idle thoughts, if you rather express them by writing them down, they will go away to some extent. If you cannot get something off your mind, just write down that thought on a piece of paper and put a large 'X' on it. You can pray about those things later. This is one of the ways to get rid of your idle thoughts. What you have to remember here is that you really need to try all your best to drive away idle thoughts and study with concentration.
If you try hard in spirit and body, you will receive strength to focus on studies. With God's grace and strength and the Holy Spirit's help, you will make a good habit of studying and enjoy it. It finally will lead you to study effectively.