Can’t concentrate? 7 ways to boost your attention

The data from the 2025 Jean Hailes National Women’s Health Survey showed that 6 in 10 women aged 18 to 24 reported concerns about their attention. Meanwhile, just 2 in 10 women aged 65 and over reported the same worries.

Concerns included getting easily distracted, finding it hard to concentrate, tuning out and having trouble organising tasks with many steps.

Dr Marita Long, Head of the Jean Hailes Women’s Brain Care Clinic, said it’s important to think about brain health across the lifespan.

“We live in an age of distraction. Phones ‘ping’ constantly and information comes at us fast. Stress, sleeping problems and some medicines can also make keeping focus an uphill battle,” Dr Long said.

“The good news is there are things you can do to reduce distractions, improve focus and support your brain health early, which may help lower your risk of cognitive issues as you age.”

3 quick fixes to enhance attention

Avoid multi-tasking

Dividing your attention between tasks may seem productive. But, according to research, it makes you slower at each task and increases information overload. Try to focus on one task at a time.

Schedule time to check notifications

Reacting to notifications as they come in can be distracting and draining. If you don’t need to respond immediately, set aside blocks of time to check emails, messages and social media notifications.

Minimise distractions

Moving to a quiet space, silencing your notifications, limiting smartphone internet access or wearing noise-cancelling headphones may help when you need to concentrate. You can also use blocking software on your devices to limit your access to certain websites, apps, content or features if you find them distracting.

Learn more: Smiling Mind explores some of the common reasons people struggle to focus and what to do.

4 longer-terms ways to protect attention

Move your body

Staying active is good for your body and brain. While exercise needs vary depending on your age and health, it is recommended that adults are active every day, or most days of the week. Walking, jogging and mowing the lawn all count. Muscle-strengthening activities are also important – think push-ups, squats, lifting, carrying and digging.

Learn more about how to protect your body with physical activity.

Get enough sleep

Sleep helps with brain development, cell repair, learning and memory. We all have different sleep needs. But for most adults, between 6 and 10 hours’ sleep each night is considered normal.

If you’re struggling to sleep well, visit the Sleep Health Foundation website for women’s health information and tips.

Practise mindfulness

Practising mindfulness supports attention, focus and overall mental fitness – and it’s a skill you can develop. You can find free, evidence-based mindfulness activities in the Smiling Mind app and on the Smiling Mind website. Create an account for access and get started with the focus toolkit.

Eat well

A healthy brain needs a healthy diet. But with so much nutrition information out there, healthy eating can be confusing. Head back to basics with our Nutrition and eating for good health information.

These tips are for a general audience. If you are worried about your brain health, or attention difficulties are affecting your daily life, it’s important to visit your doctor.

Read the research report: Australian women’s concerns about their brain health from the Jean Hailes National Women’s Health Survey.