This episode of "English Unleashed" explains how to improve concentration for learning by understanding and utilizing two types of focus: deliberate and organic concentration, emphasizing a balanced approach to effective and enjoyable learning.
Mind Map
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Hello my friends. Welcome back to
English Unleashed. I'm Tom and I'm
really happy that you are here with me
today. If you are listening now, it
means you care about your learning. It
means you want to use your time better
and you want to feel more peaceful and
focused when you study. In this episode,
we will talk about a very important
topic. How to concentrate on learning?
How to focus on learning?
We will go step by step slowly and
clearly. I will speak in simple English,
but I will also share some deeper ideas.
Sometimes I will use a longer or new
word, but when I do, I will explain the
word right away. So, take a deep breath
Okay, let's start with a question. Why
is it so hard to concentrate today?
Think about your usual day. You wake up
in the morning. Maybe the first thing
you touch is your phone. You see
messages. You see notifications.
You see news. You see short videos,
funny pictures, maybe something sad,
maybe something shocking.
Your mind is already busy before you
even stand up from the bed.
During the day, many things pull your
attention. A notification appears on
your screen. A notification means a
little message on your phone that tells
you something new happened.
A friend writes to you. An app sends you
a message.
You see an email from work or from school.
school.
Even when you sit down and say, "Okay,
now I will study English, your phone is
still near you." Like a small child
saying, "Hey, look at me. Look at me.
Look at me."
You think I will just check one message.
It is only 10 seconds. But 10 seconds
become 2 minutes. 2 minutes become 10
minutes. 10 minutes become 30 minutes
and suddenly the time for learning is gone.
gone.
This does not happen because you are a
bad student. It does not happen because
you are lazy. It happens because your
brain likes easy pleasure and quick rewards.
rewards.
When you scroll on social media, your
brain feels a small reward again and
again. A reward is something that feels
good and tells your brain, "Do this
again." So, a new image is a reward. A
new video is a reward. A new message is
also a reward.
But learning a language is different.
Learning is slower. Learning is
sometimes quiet.
Learning often feels difficult at the
beginning and the reward is later. Okay?
Not right now.
So your brain has a simple choice.
scroll and feel good now or study and
feel good later. Okay,
of course your brain often chooses now.
This is normal. This is human. You are
not alone in this. In this podcast, we
will not blame you. You will not say you
must be stronger. No, no. Instead, we
will learn how the brain works and how
we can work with it, not against it.
Okay? Many people think concentration
means I must sit very straight for 3 hours.
hours.
I must suffer.
I must force myself and feel pain.
This is not a healthy idea.
Concentration simply means your mind is
with what you are doing now. Your
attention is not jumping every second to
something else. You are listening. You
are reading. You are repeating. You are present.
present.
Think about when you watch a very
interesting movie. You forget your
phone. You forget the time. You forget
that you are hungry. You are not forcing
yourself to watch. You are just inside
the movie. That is concentration too. So
concentration is not always hard or
painful. Sometimes concentration feels
light, smooth and even enjoyable,
especially when you are doing something
you care about.
Now we will use two new words. Okay?
Deliberate concentration,
organic concentration. Don't worry, I
will define them in simple language.
So deliberate means on purpose with a
clear decision. So deliberate
concentration means you choose to focus.
You plan it. You decide when and how.
Even if you do not feel like it, organic
means natural growing by itself in a
simple natural way. So organic
concentration means your focus comes
naturally without forcing just because
you are interested, calm and in a good environment.
environment.
Both types are important. Both types can
help your English. And when you
understand a difference, you can use the
right one at the right moment. Okay. So
let's first talk about deliberate concentration.
concentration.
Remember deliberate means on purpose.
Deliberate concentration is when you say
for the next 10 minutes I will only
listen to English. From 7 to 8, I will
read this story and nothing else.
Right now, I will shadow this audio and
I will not check my phone. Okay? So, you
plan it, you decide it, and you make a
small promise to yourself.
Deliberate concentration is like going
to the gym for your mind. When you go to
the gym, you do not always feel excited.
Sometimes you feel a little tired, but
you go anyway, okay? Because you know it
is good for your body.
It is the same with deliberate concentration.
concentration.
You may not always feel motivated, but
you sit down and say, "Now I choose to
focus just for a short time. I can do
this. Deliberate concentration becomes
easier when your task is clear and
small. If you say, I will study English
this evening, this is too big and too vague.
vague.
Vague means not clear, not specific.
Your brain does not know what to do
exactly. So it becomes confused and
starts to escape.
Instead you can say I will listen to one
English unleashed episode.
I will write five simple sentences about
my day. I will learn and repeat 10
useful phrases. I will shadow Tom for
five minutes.
Now the task is exact. It is specific.
Your brain knows exactly what to do. It
is like having good instructions. Okay.
Deliberate concentration also means no multitasking.
multitasking.
Multitasking is when you try to do many
things at the same time. For example,
listening to English, checking messages,
answering emails, looking at social
media all at the same time. Your brain
cannot give full attention to many
things at once. It can jump quickly, but
this jumping is tiring and your learning
becomes weak and slow.
So a simple rule for deliberate
concentration is one block of time,
one activity,
one goal. For example, for 10 minutes, I
only listen. For 15 minutes, I only read.
read.
For five minutes, I only shadow and repeat.
repeat.
Even if the time is short, if the focus
is pure, the learning is powerful.
Now for deliberate concentration, you
can have a short ritual.
What is a ritual? A ritual is a small
action that you do every time before
something important.
So ritual here means a personal habit
that prepares your mind. For example,
put your phone in another room. Sit in
the same chair.
Take three deep breaths.
Say quietly, "This is my English time."
When you repeat this every day, your
brain starts to understand
when I do this little ritual, it is time
to focus.
You do not need a big ceremony, just a
small repeatable action. Okay. Now,
let's talk about the second type of concentration,
concentration,
organic concentration.
And remember, organic means natural,
growing by itself when conditions are right.
right.
Think about a plant. You do not pull the
plant to make it grow. You do not shout
at it. You do not say, "Grow faster.
Grow faster." No, you don't do that.
You simply give it water, light and good
soil and it grows naturally.
Organic concentration is like that. You
are doing something that feels interesting,
interesting,
meaningful, not too easy and not too
difficult. And then you notice that time
passes very fast. You are inside the activity.
activity.
Maybe you are listening to a story that
touches your heart. Maybe you are
watching an English video about a hobby
you love. Or maybe you are writing a
message to a real person in English. You
are not forcing yourself to focus. You
just forget everything else because you
care about what you are doing. That is
organic concentration.
Now, organic concentration needs good
conditions like a plant. Okay? For
example, the topic is interesting or
emotional for you. The level is not too difficult.
