Have you ever thought how much more successful you would be if you could use your brain to the fullest? All modern studies in this area can be reduced to the two statements:
- If we could create the worst environment for education, it would have much in common with modern classrooms.
- If we design a business environment that is unfavorable to the brain work, we’ll get something like a modern office.
So how to make the brain operate at full capacity?
#1 Movement Prolongs the Life of your Brain
Although there’s a lot of controversy about the evolution of humanity, the fact that the ancient people moved a lot is recognized by paleoanthropologists around the world. On average, an ancient person covered about 20 km per day – just like today’s top runners when preparing for competitions! The brain needs an active way of life, and contemporary people are no exception!
Physical activity stimulates long-term memory, logical thinking, attention and the ability to solve set tasks. It’s like a sweet for the cognitive system. We just need to move, and anyone can use our athletic past to boost the brain activity. According to scientists, daily twenty-minute walks reduce the risk of an attack of angina pectoris by 57%!
- Running or walking on the treadmill at a slow speed is one of the best tricks to come up with a bunch of fresh ideas. Have you notices that the best ideas come not when you at work but rather at rest or during long walks?
#2 Track Your Psychological State
The development of the brain has gone through three main stages:
- The reptilian brain responsible for unconditioned reflexes, breathing, palpitation, sleep, and awakening.
- The limbic brain responsible for everything related to survival: struggle, nutrition, reproduction, the ability to escape from the pursuers.
- The thinking brain (the neocortex), or the cortex of the brain. The neocortex is about 80% of the total mass of the brain substance and is responsible for processing information obtained from all sensory organs. The neocortex allows us to think, make decisions, engage in creativity, talk, etc. In general, that’s the neocortex that makes us Homo sapiens as a kind.
Closely monitor your mental state. In a strong organism, long-term stress often causes panic attacks and outbreaks of uncontrolled anger (limbic brain); in a weak organism, overworking causes apathy and depression (the reptilian brain). It’s all about proper time-management.
#3 The Structure of the Brain is Individual
Even identical twins have different neural “wirings” due to the insignificant differences in the mechanism for processing incoming information. For example, if you are watching a movie with someone, you will have different memories of it. This is the essence of one of the rules of the brain.
All that you learn during life affects your brain (in other words, changes its “wiring”). Different people have different parts of the brain more or less developed, and it’s quite natural. There are no people with absolutely identical information stored in the brain!
- Use this rule of the brain to remove the limiting belief that this work is not for you or that you will never master this skill. The solution is in choosing the correct method.
#4 We Focus Attention on the Interesting
Scientists have discovered many factors affecting attention. Four of them have the greatest practical potential:
- Emotions. When the brain catches an emotionally colored event, it starts produce dopamine. As this hormone perfectly helps memory in processing information, the brain receives a strong signal: “Remember this!” That’s why emotional effects are very useful for teachers, parents, and leaders.
- Meaning. Our brain is designed to remember only the essence of phenomena, so we always miss details. Use this feature as much as possible. For example, to remember a large amount of information, do not try to learn all the details. Concentrate on the value, try to find common patterns and link all the details into a coherent
- Multitasking is a myth. By its nature, the brain can focus only on one thing at a time. Naturally, we are not talking about elementary multitasking such as walking at talking at the same time.
- The brand needs breaks. We can’t perceive information for a long time without breaks. Unfortunately, this rule is often neglected by teachers, managers, and sellers. They try to give the interlocutor as much information as possible, forgetting that the brain can stay focused no longer than for 10 minutes. Then it requires a pause or a reset.
Use these in learning and self-development. Draw mnemonic schemes and pictures, do more breaks, and fill yourself with enthusiasm!
#5 Stress Prevents the Brain from Learning
The hippocampus, which is responsible for human memory, is strewn with receptors, which makes it very susceptible to stress signals. If stress is not too strong, the brain works well, and the person will remember information better.
The reason for this lies in the evolutionary development. It was the life-threatening events that should have been remembered. In difficult conditions for life, everything happened at lightning speed and only the fastest individuals who could remember this experience and accurately reproduce it with the necessary speed survived.
This is confirmed by scientific research: the human brain instantly remembers the experience obtained under stress and quickly reproduces it. Chronic stress can provoke heart attacks, weakening of the immune system, depression, reduced ability to learn and remember. Analysts calculated that US companies lose about $ 200-300 billion annually because of staff stress.
Stress that does not stop for a long time is an unnatural condition. The constant presence of adrenaline in the blood can lead to negative consequences. Cope with the stress once you reveal its signs!
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