Modern life pulls our attention in many directions. It can be hard to find something that truly holds our focus. Our hobbies need to compete for our attention with social media, phone notifications and streaming algorithms. We’re also often struggling with decision fatigue and general exhaustion. We want to give our minds and bodies a break, but it can feel really difficult to do this. We need something that isn’t too effortful to get into, but interesting enough to maintain our focus. Knitting is the perfect attention hook. The process of knitting can help to enhance attention and focus in a number of ways. Here we outline how and why it manages to do this. We also offer some key takeaway tips to help you make the most of knitting’s attention-hooking properties.
1. Knitting has tangible results
Unlike much of modern life, knitting has an observable and tangible outcome. Knitting enables us to make something that didn’t exist before. It could be something very practical like a dishcloth, a beautiful garment to wear, a gift for someone we love, or a creative piece. This in itself is rewarding and encourages our persistence with it. Visible progress reinforces our attention and motivates us to continue.
Takeaway tip: pick a project that you’re excited about. If the final result doesn’t really appeal to you it’s going to be much harder to keep focused on it.
2. Knitting is made up of goals at multiple levels
Knitting is an activity built of many goals of varying levels. We know that having regular milestones or achievements can help us sustain our attention in a task. This is the reason that computer games are so compulsive, and apps that encourage us to engage in helpful behaviours such as learning a language or doing exercise offer badges or rewards for our persistence. These multi-level goals are intrinsic to knitting. There are the individual stitches, but also larger milestones like the end of a row or of a colour stripe or pattern repeat. Many of us are familiar with the idea of saying ‘just one more row’ before we put down our knitting, illustrating that these goals motivate us to sustain our attention.
Takeaway tip: be mindful of all your knitting achievements during the course of a project. You could tick each section of a pattern off once it’s finished, or highlight each completed line of a chart.
3. Knitting is dynamic
Our capacity to offer attention to a task isn’t fixed. It varies over time and is dependent on context. With knitting, you can match the level of demand from your project to the amount of attention you are able to offer. An easy ‘fully automated’ project can help you sustain your attention while you listen in a meeting, or a more complex task might offer you the experience of being ‘in a flow state’ when you want to give knitting your undivided attention.
Takeaway tip: have multiple projects on the go so you can match the cognitive effort required with the attentional resource you have available. Have a simple garter or stockinette project available for when you are very tired or need to concentrate on something else at the same time. Compliment this with a lace or colour-work pattern for those times you really want to shut off your thinking brain and be fully absorbed in your knitting.
4. Knitting is diverse
Knitting offers a huge range of skills, techniques, materials and projects so that no knitter ever needs to feel bored. There is always something more to learn or new to try. In addition, knitting projects are small enough that it is feasible for us to have at least a few on our needles at once in order that we always have a range of options available to us. For those of us who require novelty or change in order to sustain our attention, knitting can offer us limitless options.
Takeaway tip: look out for projects that offer you the chance to learn a new skill or try a different technique. You could also play with colour to maintain your interest – either through colour work, or variegated yarn.
5. Knitting can be done in small increments
Even if your attention span is short, you can complete a few stitches which still contribute towards a final project. This makes knitting a great way to use small bursts of time and attention. Because knitting is so portable it’s also easy to do if you have limited energy or space. It can be done in bed if you’re not feeling well, or on the bus while commuting. Once a project is underway it doesn’t require any setting up, logging in or downloading – it’s easy to get straight back into it whenever you are able to make time.
Takeaway tip: If you struggle with concentration and are seeking to increase your attention span try to make time for knitting every day. Start off knitting for a short time that feels comfortable for you. Each day make very gradual increases to the amount of time you spend working on our knitting. For example, if you can only manage 5 minutes comfortably at the start, try to add on an extra minute each day.
Knitting is the perfect attention hook, whether you’re seeking something to help settle your focus, support your concentration and cut through rumination. If you’re a seasoned knitter we hop our takeaway tips will help you make the most of your hobby. If you’re new to knitting do check out our free guide for getting started with knitting.
