4 Tips Sharpen Your Focus

You can get more done while feeling less stressed and gain extra free time – for fun, family and you – along the way. Discover the innovative sciencebacked strategies to make it happen.

- Mirel Ketchiff

We all have hidden pockets of time in our days, research shows. The key to taking advantage of them: being extra productive, but in a way that’s smart, not stress-inducing. And these four new groundbreaking techniques will help you do just that – getting your must-dos (work, chores and errands) done faster, so you have plenty of time for your want-tos (family, friends and exercise).

REWIND YOUR CLOCK

“Your cells contain special ‘clock genes’, which operate on a loop, priming your body to do different things at different times based on day-long cycles of light and dark,” explains Suhas Kshirsagar, an Ayurvedic physician and the author of Change Your Schedule, Change Your Life. Sync up your habits to these genes, and you’ll operate super efficiently.

One of the most powerful ways to do this is to schedule your workouts between 6am and 10am. “Levels of cortisol, a stimulating stress hormone, peak in this window, so if you exercise then, you’ll feel more invigorated afterwards,” Suhas says. “Plus, research shows you’ll double or even triple your cognitive performance for the rest of the day.”