What is Your Alert Factor?

Noticing when and where your thought process brightens or dims is crucial to self awareness and growth. Everyone's concentration fluctuates. It is important that attentiveness be allowed to ebb and flow so that the mind can absorb and associate information. Addressing the timing and control of fluctuations is worth some thought.

Extending the duration or depth of your alertness depends on your energy level, interest level, and personal discipline. It is easy to be attentive when well rested and nourished. It requires no effort at all to maintain interest with pleasurable things. Conversely, when tired, disinterested or unmotivated, alertness is hit or miss. Your alert factor determines how much you get out of life. Being unaware of your alertness means you are probably unaware of your surroundings and unfortunately missing out on what life has to offer. Ignorance is bliss. However, if you want to get more, give more...more attention, more discipline, more purpose.

Being purposeful in the intensity of your concentration takes practice. Start by paying attention to how you pay attention. Naturally, some new or complicated endeavors require an increased volume of steady deep thought; while familiar, simple tasks need less. Going beyond that which is natural, depends on change. Better concentration can come with maturity, but not necessarily. Implementing intentional degrees of concentration (as opposed to counting on maturity) is a more reliable way to develop an effective attention span. This takes discipline.

Discipline that is enforced is effective as long as the enforcement is present. Discipline that is cultivated and grows from within is the most reliable, productive, and long-lasting. There are three situations that motivate human beings to improve anything, including discipline: fear of retribution, anticipation of reward, or for the greater good. I opt for the latter because improvement for the greater good depends least on others, benefits the most, and is easy to repeat and become a lasting effect.

In summary, you can get and give more from life with purposeful alertness born out of self-discipline. Go for it! Any increase in the duration and depth of your alert factor will enhance your surroundings.