Fix your gaze on a specific point at the same distance as your screen or book for 30 to 60 seconds before beginning a demanding task to immediately increase your level of attention and reduce perceived mental effort.

noli's read

The idea of using gaze to focus the mind is based on very sound cognitive foundations. An experimental study by Krause and Poth (2023) confirms that maintaining a stable visual fixation helps relieve the pressure associated with action control by locking in spatial attention. Furthermore, basic research (expert opinions and neurophysiological models) shows a direct link between narrowing the visual field and activating arousal systems in our brain. However, the claim that this 60-second routine instantly releases waves of acetylcholine to boost the subsequent task extrapolates these complex mechanisms. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) are still lacking to prove that such a visual warm-up directly and immediately improves subsequent work performance. Nevertheless, it remains a very interesting and accessible behavioral anchoring tool for making a mental transition before getting to work.

the sources

1. 1NIH Office of Dietary Supplements 2026
2. 2Manson JE et al. 2019
3. 3Bhatt DL et al. 2019
4. 4Khan SU, Lone AN, Khan MS, et al. 2021
5. 5Liao Y, Xie B, Zhang H, et al. 2019
6. 6hubermanprotocols.com (fan reference guide)