Join Dr. Evian Gordon as he discusses the Focus Pathway and how you can improve your focus both in and out of the office.

1. 5 Brain-Based Ways
to Improve
Employee Focus
DR. EVIAN GORDON l SEPTEMBER 2019

2. About EvianDr. Evian Gordon, MD, PhD.
2
About Total Brain
• Founder, Chairman, and Chief Medical Officer at
Total Brain
• Integrative Neuroscientist located in San
Francisco, CA
• Mental health and fitness platform powered by
the world’s largest standardized neuroscientific
database
• 40+ mind and brain training exercises that focus
on your brain’s 12 capacities
• Used by large consumer groups and Fortune
500 companies

3. HOW LONG
CAN MOST
PEOPLE FOCUS
FOR?

4. HOW LONG
CAN MOST
PEOPLE FOCUS
FOR?
10 – 20
minutes

5. 1. Know your focus strengths
and deficits
2. Train with the end in mind
and use a Focus Pathway
3. Deliberate practice leads to
focus mastery
4. Master the types of focus
and your ultradian dips
5. Transfer your new focus
habit into work task closures
6. 5 takeaways and questions
Agenda
5

6. 1. Know your focus strengths
and deficits
2. Train with the end in mind
and use a Focus Pathway
3. Deliberate practice leads to
focus mastery
4. Master the types of focus
and your ultradian dips
5. Transfer your new focus
habit into work task closures
6. 5 takeaways and questions
Agenda
6

7. WHAT IS FOCUS?
Focus is being present in
the moment, while
ignoring distractions
- Until the task is
completed.
Easy access to the web and technology has been the
greatest gift and the biggest disrupter of focus.
Minimize or constrain distractions in the office by having defined
times to do email and social media.
Beyond discipline: use a brain training platform to asses, train and
track your capacity to focus and learn to ignore distractions.
You are what you focus on.
We all want to be more focused at
work and in our relationships.
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Focus can be boosted by small disciplines.
What is your number one distraction?

8. How does the brain focus?
EMOTION FEELING COGNITION SELF-CONTROL
FOCUS
Implementation
Narrow Spotlight
Convergent
Task Closure
Vigilance
Wide Spotlight
Divergent
Innovation

9. Negativity is associated with reduced sustained attention.
Stress can lead to increased negativity, which reduces sustained attention.
Inadequate sleep reduces sustained attention.
Factors including anxiety and stress can reduce sleep resulting in decreased
sustained attention, while optimal sleep enhances it.
How willing are you to change?
If there’s a lack of readiness to change to improve focus, then it’s less likely
change will happen.
9
What affects an employee’s ability to focus?
Clark et al., 2006; Mathersul et al., 2009; Williams et al. 2009
Database
> 1 Million
Datasets
Total Brain International Database

10. The 3 Types of Focus
Each type can be improved with targeted training.
Sustained Attention
The ability to focus 1 specific task for a
continuous time without being distracted.
Selective Attention
The ability to maintain cognitive focus on a
task or behavior in the face of competing
stimuli.
Divided Attention
The ability to simultaneously focus on
finding the right balance between doing
more than one task, or multi-tasking.
10

11. 11
Assess. Train. Track.
Re-assess to resolve what works in: Focus Training and Biohacking.
Magnify Strengths. Reduce Deficits. Screen for Mental Health.

12. 1. Know your focus strengths
and deficits
2. Train with the end in mind
and use a Focus Pathway
3. Deliberate practice leads to
focus mastery
4. Master the types of focus
and your ultradian dips
5. Transfer your new focus
habit into work task closures
6. 5 takeaways and questions
Agenda
12

13. Why do
80%
fail to sustain a new
habit?
What are the
20%
doing right?

14. Insight into
neuroplasticity
Why do
80%
fail to sustain a new
habit?
What are the
20%
doing right?
Use a pathway
Deliberate
practice leads to
focus mastery

15. z
Focus Pathway
BRING TOGETHER ALL THE FACTORS THAT WORK FOR YOU in Sustained, Selective, Divided, Innovation Focus
ASSESS
15
HABIT TRAIN
Track what works for you.
Magnify strengths. Reduce deficits.
Screen for Mental Health.

16. z
The Habit Pathway
16
1
Readiness to
change
2 3 4 5
Focus capacity:
strength or deficit
ADHD or
depression?
Track and train: 30
day training
Transfer

17. z
The Habit Pathway
17
1
Readiness to
change
2 3 4 5
The Biggest Gap
Is Between Knowing and DOING
Focus capacity:
strength or deficit
ADHD or
depression?
Track and train: 30
day training
Transfer

18. 1. Know your focus strengths
and deficits
2. Train with the end in mind
and use a Focus Pathway
3. Deliberate practice leads to
focus mastery
4. Master the types of focus
and your ultradian dips
5. Transfer your new focus
habit into work task closures
6. 5 takeaways and questions
Agenda
18

19. 5 HABIT
GENERATING
TIPS
Strategies for achieving
better focus
Small daily steps and experience a dopamine reward.
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Small Steps
Anchors
Anchor a new habit to an existing automatic habit.
Stay on track with continuous practice.
Deliberate Practice
Picture a goal and what it feels like to achieve it.
Visualizations and Affirmations
Share your wins and have a plan for challenges.
Share Wins

20. How are habits formed?
20
Your first training is a game changer.
After the first seven times, you learn the
most about generating an effective habit.
By the 20th time there is a statistically
significant habit engagement.
Your habit is consolidated.
Your new habit becomes an automatic part
of your daily life. (Gordon 1,000 times rule)
1,000
times
30
days
20
times
7
times
1
time
CONSCIOUS
TRAINING:
• Practice
• Visualize
NONCONSCIOUS
TRAINING:
• Creation of
automatic new
brain habit
5 Habit Milestones
1 2 3 4 5
5 Habit Milestones

21. 1. Know your focus strengths
and deficits
2. Train with the end in mind
and use a Focus Pathway
3. Deliberate practice leads to
focus mastery
4. Master the types of focus
and your ultradian dips
5. Transfer your new focus
habit into work task closures
6. 5 takeaways and questions
Agenda
21

22. WORK Task
Closure
Vs.
WORK
CREATIVITY and
Innovation
Work projects often require sustained
arousal with a narrow spotlight of
attention and postponement of
gratification until the task is completed.
Creativity on the other hand, requires low
arousal, low adrenaline, with a wide
spotlight of focus to make instinctive
creative new associations.
Modulating and switching to the right type
of focus, at the right time, is critical to
achieve any task or goal.

23. z
23
SLEEP
REM every 90 minutes
AWAKE
ULTRADIAN DIPS
every 90 minutes
Time of day impacts focus
Every 90 minutes we have an ULTRADIAN DIP in energy and focus.

24. 1. Know your focus strengths
and deficits
2. Train with the end in mind
and use a Focus Pathway
3. Deliberate practice leads to
focus mastery
4. Master the types of focus
and your ultradian dips
5. Transfer your new focus
habit into work task closures
6. 5 takeaways and questions
Agenda
24

25. z
Transfer with BrainSight
25
TRAIN
Track what works for you.
ü Skepticism about training transference
ü Skepticism about motivation (its transient)
ü Start with the end in mind (track it!)
ü Deliberate practice (iterative feedback)
ü Training is simulation Momentum contagion
ü U R Unique: PERSONALIZE what works for you
ü Apply Focus Training to ALL tasks at work!!!

26. 5 Key
Takeaways
Know your focus strengths and deficits
Train with the end in mind and use a
Focus Pathway
Deliberate practice leads to focus
mastery
Manage your focus across the day and
during ultradian dips
Personalize what works best for
ALL your focus tasks
1
2
3
4
5

27. Learn more about what the
Total Brain platform can do for
your organization.
Contact us for a free demo.
Risk-Free Implementation
Evaluate Your Organization
Visit us at totalbrain.com/learnmore
Get in Touch

28. QUESTIONS?
Thanks for attending!
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