How to focus while studying on a laptop

Decide before you open anything

"Revise" isn't a task. It's a cloud. Your brain can't start a cloud, so it goes looking for something easier.

Before you sit down, write one sentence: "Finish the notes for chapter 4." "Do questions 1 to 6." Something you'll know you've finished. Then close every tab you won't need for it. Every open tab is a door, and most distraction starts with a tiny, half-conscious click.

Close the last thing properly, too. Sophie Leroy, a management researcher, found that when people switch away from an unfinished task, part of their attention stays stuck on it. She called it attention residue. A one-line note ("next: section 3.2") helps you let it go.

Put your phone in another room

Face down isn't enough. When London School of Economics researchers filmed everyday phone use, 89% of pickups were started by the person, not by a notification.

So silent mode only helps with the other 11%. Distance helps with the rest. A phone in another room puts a few seconds between the urge and your hand, and that's often all you need.

Study in blocks, rest off-screen

Work in blocks of 25 to 45 minutes, with a short break already planned. In a 2023 study of 87 university students, those who took breaks on a fixed schedule reported less tiredness and distraction, and more concentration and motivation, than students who chose their own break times.

They got the same work done in less time. More in the Pomodoro technique for studying.

Then make the break a real one. In a Rutgers experiment with 414 people, those who spent their break on a phone did worse afterwards than people who took the same break on paper or on a computer. A 2022 review of 22 studies found that short breaks like standing, stretching or getting water raised energy and reduced tiredness.

When the urge hits, name it

Even with all of this, there will be moments when you want to escape. That's normal. It doesn't mean you're bad at studying.

Stop and name the feeling in one word: anxious, bored, frustrated, overwhelmed, foggy or self-doubt. A UCLA study found that putting a feeling into words calmed the brain's alarm response. Then spend two minutes on what that feeling needs, and go back. Why we doomscroll explains what each one needs.

If voices around you are the problem, that's different. A 2026 review of 30 studies found that background speech slows reading, and speech you can understand hurts most. Headphones with a steady sound like brown noise or rain help blur it.

Your next study session

Here's how it fits together. Write your one-sentence goal. Close the tabs. Phone to another room. Start a 25-minute focus timer with the easiest part, to build momentum. Take five minutes standing, with water. Put the hardest part in the second block, while you're warmed up.

Four blocks like that is close to two hours of real studying. At the end, write one line about where to start next time.

The step people forget is naming the feeling, because in the moment you don't remember it. That's what CatchScroll is for. It sits next to your notes: when the urge hits, you tap the feeling, take a two-minute reset, and you're back in your block.

If you've tried this for a few weeks and still can't focus at all, talk to a doctor or your university's student support. Sleep, stress and health all play a part.

So, what's the one sentence for your next session?