4 techniques for sharper focus and a stronger memory

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If staying focused and absorbing information feels harder as you age, you're not imagining it. Normal aging brings gradual changes to thinking and memory, with research showing that memory loss begins as early as age 45.

The slowdown in processing can create a bottleneck of information, making it harder for information to enter your short-term memory and be stored for long-term memory.

How to improve focus and attention

The good news is that you can take steps to improve focus and attention. Try these four strategies to help you tune out distractions and improve your ability to focus in daily life:

• When someone is talking to you, look at the person and listen closely. If you missed something that was said, ask the person to repeat it or to speak more slowly.
• Paraphrase what was said to make sure you understand it and reinforce the information. For example, if someone says, "We can see the movie either at Loews Theater at 7:30 or at the Paramount at 7:50," you might respond, "Which would you prefer, 7:30 at Loews or 7:50 at the Paramount?"
• If you find that you tend to become distracted during conversations, try getting together with people in quiet environments. For example, you could suggest meeting at someone's home instead of at a noisy restaurant. When you do meet people at a restaurant, sit at a table near a wall. If your companions sit against the wall and you sit facing them, you'll be able to focus on them without having your attention wander to other diners.
• You can improve your ability to focus on a task and screen out distractions if you do one thing at a time. Try to avoid interruptions. For example, if someone asks you something while you're in the middle of reading or working, ask if the person can wait until you're finished. Don't answer the phone until you've finished what you're doing - let voicemail take the call.

This is the supplied newsletter’s dated educational content, not individual medical advice. The age-45 statement describes the source report, not a diagnosis or a prediction for every person. New, worsening or disruptive memory problems should be discussed with a clinician.

Earlier published wording (archived for history)

The earlier wording below is retained for history and is not the corrected source translation above.

Feeling like concentrating and soaking up new information takes more effort than it used to? That is a real effect, not your imagination. Aging naturally brings gradual shifts in thinking and memory, and studies indicate the decline can start as early as age 45.

Slower processing acts like a bottleneck: less information makes it into short-term memory, so less of it gets encoded into long-term memory.

Ways to sharpen focus and attention

Fortunately, focus and attention respond to practice. These four techniques can help you shut out distractions and stay locked in during everyday life:

When a person is speaking to you, face them and listen carefully. Missed part of it? Ask them to say it again or to slow down.

Restate what you heard in your own words to confirm you understood and to fix the information in your mind. For example, if a friend offers two showings of a film at two different cinemas and times, repeat both options back and ask which one they prefer.

If conversation tends to scatter your attention, arrange to meet people somewhere calm - a home rather than a loud restaurant, for instance. When you do eat out, pick a table by the wall and sit facing your companions so your gaze stays on them instead of roaming around the room.

Doing one thing at a time sharpens your concentration and filters out interruptions. If someone asks you something mid-task, request that they wait until you finish. Let a call go to voicemail rather than breaking off what you are doing.