The Birmingham age-herald., 1924-05-10
THE BALLOT
 BOX
On Concentration
By N. ADDINoroN BRUCE

More people, it is safe to say, would train themselves to concentrate on the tasks and problems of their daily life if more appre' ciated just how concentration would benefit them. A passage from Payot strikipgly brings out one of the resultant benefits
 By concentrating my attention, 1 allow the fertilising processes of the association of ideas to work in the fields of constructive effort diverting them at the same time from the regions abundant in evil germs. In So doing I keep these latter regions barren and prevent the evil germs from bearing fruit 4
 And besides this negative benefit there is the positive benefit of steadily drawing to oneself, through the same principle of asso- citation, larger and larger accumulation of success-winning ideas. The psychologist, William James, has stressed this truth in a way that is as picturesque as it is lucid {
 "Let man set himself the task of verify ing such a theory as that of evolution, and facts will soon cluster and cling to him as grapes to their stem.
 Their relations to the theory will hold them fast; and the more of them the mind is able to discern, the greater the erudition will become. .s... s.
 Which applies with equal force to any ssib. ject made the object of concentration. Only, of course, the concentration must be real. It will not do to think of the subject merely in casual. desultory way. The thinking must be intent-and frequent.
 Frequency is in fact as important an eIe- ment in efficient concentration as intensity of thinking It is far better to concentrate frequently for short time than occasionally for long periods For that matter. pro ionged concentration. or raher the effort at prolonged concentration. itself accounts for the failure of many to concentrate efficiently at all.
 The mind has a curious habit of baking If the attempt is made to hold it overIons to one subject Like a truant schooiboy it slips away to busy itself about other things This is merely that it may gain breathing spell, so to speak
 Unfortunately it's reluctance to be kept steadily at the same task is mieinterpreted by many would-be concentrators Instead of tactfuIly conceding the minds right to rest they imperiously drag it back to work only to see it wriggIe once more out of their grasp. Then, in despair, they may abandon all concentration, saying:
 @Whats the use? I might as well admit right now that I haven't got 1t in me to con centrate. I'll have to SO muddling along as I've always donep
 Very different would be the outcome if the concentration periods were made brief, in. tense and frequent. It is by coming back to the same subject for little while again and again and again that mastery of the subject is most surely attained
 And this, by the way, is the secret not only of efficient concentrating but of the develop ing of memory power.
 You have doubtless marveled at the ability of this or that acquaintance to remember data pertaining to his work or to some hobby. The explanation is to be found in the simple fact that the remembering acquaintance has again and again turned his attention to the things concerning which he manifests such uncommon power of recall. Or, once more in the language of William James
 "Of two men with the same outward ex- perienees and the same amount of mere na. tive tenaeity, the one who thinks over his experiences most, and weaves them into sys- tematic relations with each other, will be the one with the beat memory"