I'm definitely stealing this tip for improving attention span

We now have a 47-second (!) attention span, but this simple hack is brilliant.

Hello friends!

One of the top complaints I hear from you guys is that you have a hard time concentrating. You’re picking up your phones every two seconds during the workday or even while out with friends, and you feel like when it’s time to hunker down and focus on something important, you just … can’t.

It’s not just you! Our attention spans have dramatically decreased over the past 20 years. According to today’s podcast guest, Dr. Gloria Mark, Ph.D., in 2004—the year Facebook was invented—we were able to stay on one screen for about two-and-a-half minutes. Fast forward 21 years, and we can only stay on one screen for 47 seconds (!) on average.

Before we get into her simple tip for improving our attention spans, who is Dr. Mark? She’s basically the expert on how our attention works in the modern world. She’s a professor of informatics at UC Irvine and has spent decades studying how we focus (or don’t) in the digital age. Her research dives into why we constantly switch tasks, how that impacts our mental well-being, and what we can actually do about it. She’s also the author of the book Attention Span, which breaks down why our focus feels so fragmented and how we can reclaim it.

It’s not your fault that your attention span is as short as this string. Photo cred: Francesco Carta fotografo/Getty Images

If you’ve been here for a while, you know that this isn’t the first time I’ve covered attention span. Cal Newport’s episode on how to work less and get more done was a total game-changer for how I work personally, and I have a whole episode packed with tricks for spending less time on your phone. But Dr. Mark brings a fresh perspective I’m fascinated by, and I was particularly obsessed with this tip:

Visualize where you want to be tonight at 7 p.m.

This is basically a more urgent version of the famous “where do you see yourself five years from now” question. Do you want to be curled up on your couch with a good book and a cup of tea, or watching a fun show or movie with your partner? Or do you want to be frantically trying to finish up the work you didn’t do during the day because you were too busy switching from screen to screen and scrolling social media?

Here’s why this works so well:

🤳Awareness creates agency

Noticing when you’re falling into unhelpful habits (like mindlessly scrolling social media) is the first step toward changing them. Visualization makes this awareness more tangible, helping you recognize distractions before they derail you.

🤔 Thinking about your future self can be really motivating

In thinking about where you want to be at 7 p.m., the goal isn’t just to think about what you want to be doing—it’s also about how you want to feel. Do you ant to feel fulfilled? Relaxed? Using this mental image as a guide makes it easier to resist distractions that might push you toward stress and regret later.

✅ Planning your actions in advance is powerful

When you visualize your ideal evening, you’re essentially setting a mental goal. This can act like a mini road map throughout the day, making it easier to stick to productive choices instead of falling into reactive ones (like last-minute deadline scrambling at 10 p.m.)

From the episode:

“I look back and I see myself working straight through putting the kids to bed and then going back to work on that deadline. That is not healthy. To be more efficient, we can practice this kind of visualization and see that as a goal of what we want to achieve by the end of the day. And it helps keep us on track.”

The takeaway:

If you’re struggling to pay attention and find yourself procrastinating and getting distracted throughout the day, visualize exactly where you want to be tonight at 7 p.m. What do you want to be doing? How do you want to feel? This can help you stay focused throughout the day.

For more brilliant tips on how to reclaim your attention span, like the exact amount of time Dr. Mark spends on social media (yes, she does use it!), and her top activity recommendations for when you’re having a really hard time focusing, head to the Liz Moody podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or YouTube. And let me know in the comments—have you ever tried anything Dr. Mark didn’t discuss on the podcast that’s really helped with your attention span? I’m all ears!

Xo,

Liz

P.S. To access the full episode transcript plus key takeaways from the episode, hit the subscribe button below! And stay tuned, because on Friday we’re rolling out a 30-day Reclaim Your Attention Span challenge for subscribers only, and I’m truly so excited about it.