Welcome back to the savvy psychologist. I'm Dr. Ellen Hendrickson and every week I'll help you

meet life's challenges with evidence-based research, a sympathetic ear, and zero judgment.

Your mind used to be like a sponge, but today it's more like a colander.

You try to read, and while you're looking at the words nothing is

sinking in. You try to have a conversation, but everyone sounds like Charlie

Brown's teacher. You try to work or write or plan or think, but instead it feels like you're in the middle of Times Square on New Year's Eve.

Overwhelming and distracting.

So whatever you call it, concentration, focus, or attention, it's quickly becoming the rarest of resources.

Why can't we focus? Well these days, the finger is most often pointed at technology.

Smartphones are giving us the attention span of goldfish!

Shout the headlines.

And while technology certainly plays a role in our fractured attention,

it's not the only culprit. What else could it be?

Well, check out these nine reasons, plus six ways to get your focus on. The first possible

culprit could be you're anxious.

Worry and overthinking take up all your bandwidth,

leaving you unable to focus.

Indeed, worry is the ultimate in missing out. It takes you out of the moment you're in and

puts you squarely in worst case scenarios that not only aren't real, but what's more, probably

won't happen.

culprit number two could be you're burned out.

Along with exhaustion and resentment,

...