Retrain Your Brain

Is it just me or does the world seem to be moving at an even faster pace than ever before? Do you find yourself struggling with time management in day-to-day activities or have you ever zoned out so much that you completely forgot what you were doing? You could even struggle to remember details or names that once so easily came to you.

Personally, I have dealt with all of these issues at one time or another, in fact my wife often makes fun of the fact that I struggle remembering some of my cousin’s names. In fairness, I have a lot of cousins but I really shouldn’t have such an issue with this type of recall. Where I once could remember with far greater detail every part of my day, I now have to strain to unlock these recent events. I firmly believe that it all comes down to the usage of our brain and how we train ourselves to focus on the most important parts of our day, ie.) work, immediate family and just general survival. However, I believe by taking some time to recharge our brains and body we can obtain more efficient results in all parts of our lives. 

I am by no means a medical professional, but I can speak from experience how certain activities can help train our brain for better results. I recently noticed that I spend far too much time “doom scrolling” my phone and this mindless activity was not doing me any favours as it would often leave me tired and mentally exhausted from reading things that added no value, sort of like a constant diet of fast food. I really noticed this when my six-year-old daughter challenged me to her game of memory cards and I realized I could not recall any of the cards that were flipped over. My attention to detail had gone to nothing in this instance. I could spend all day completely focused on work, but I was leaving nothing for the rest of my life, and I knew I needed to find ways to be more present at all times. 

After a little research, I found some things that were effective for me and I thought sharing that might give others some ideas on how to improve their mental capabilities. Some of these are super obvious but I would also venture to guess that we take most of them for granted and don’t realize we aren’t doing anything to help ourselves. 

Again, I must remind you that I am sharing this with anecdotal references and not every idea or example will work for everyone. Take the ideas and tweak them for yourself to give you the most positive outcome.

Tips for Brain Success

1. Stay active. This one seems pretty obvious but the more we slow down our bodies, the more the brain follows suit. According to a study published by The National Library of Medicine in the US the conclusions showed “physical activity improved the cognitive function of adults in all mental states with moderate intensity aerobic exercise and resistance exercise on as many days as possible” (National Library of Medicine). I know that even if I take 20 minutes out of my day to do something physical, I feel much better, and when I don’t do it for multiple days, I suffer in feeling more exhausted physically and mentally. When I do work out, I feel mentally sharp for a longer period of time.

2. Play games that keep you engaged. Whether it’s checkers or chess or strategic card games, anything that can keep your mind focused can have long-lasting effects. I like to play a card game with my wife and when it gets competitive and the strategy is involved, I end up feeling sharper than if I had laid around watching TV.

3. Usual Visualization techniques. This one comes from the online source The Medical News Today. Visualizing with great detail any part of your day gives you mental focus, and the more you do it, the more second nature it becomes for your brain to visualize just about any scenario. You can read more about the study about using visualization as a framework here.
4. Take breaks. From a personal perspective I cannot stress this enough. As a Financial Controller, I often find myself deep in spreadsheets trying to work out issues or find inconsistencies. There are times when I will be working for a long period of time, and finding myself getting nowhere productive. It is at this point, and honestly I probably should do it even sooner, that walking away for a time becomes the most effective thing I can do. I cannot tell you how many times I have left something for 10 or 15 minutes to regroup my thought process away from the problem, and then when I go back I find the answer within minutes of sitting down. We need that disconnect or we sometimes struggle to go in the same circle looking for an answer that only comes when we get off the merry go round.

5. Listen to music. This one is very personal for most people as we all have different types of music we listen to, with some people not enjoying music at all. However, it has been shown that music can connect our experience as we immerse ourselves in the aesthetic of music. The article linked here shows research on how the brain connects and offers rewards while listening to music.

6. Socialization. Taking time to talk with people and connect on human levels is something I find can be helpful for many reasons. Not only does the brain feel the connections, but when you need that down time to regroup, it is nice to have someone to talk to, helping you pull away from negative thoughts or feelings that could creep into your day to drag your mental abilities down. Do not take for granted that as a social species we need to reach out. I know from my own life that I have periods where I disconnected too much from other people and this caused my mental health to deteriorate and thus made it harder for me to focus to come out the other side. The brain is powerful and when given the right circumstances can drive you forward with ease, but it can also weigh you down when it is not given sustenance.

7. Do not force your brain to be the only thing you use for recall. Since there is no way to always perfectly keep that brain in optimal working order, help it out by doing things that will take some of the pressure off. My lists, use your calendar, make notes on your phone, even tie a string around your wrist, but try not to say “I will remember that, or I will remember how to do that later”. You are only setting yourself up for possible failure because if you cannot recall it later, you will either punish yourself for not remembering or completely miss the activity that you were to do. Either way, it can have negative effects on your mental acuity and could easily be avoided by using all techniques available to you, rather than being so bold to believe that you are perfect. Take the pressure off, use the tools.

There are many other things that you can do in trying to help you get that brain in optimal working order. Getting lots of sleep, doing things that are interesting to you, going for a walk, or meditating are all things that work for some people. However, if there is one thing I can offer as a last piece of advice it would be to ask for help when you need it. Struggling without looking for assistance might be the most detrimental thing I am guilty of ever doing, and I know that had I reached out to others I may have avoided some of the mistakes along the way but also would not have had such a hard time getting out of my own zone of negativity. Our brains are in constant need of regeneration but it comes in many different forms. Try and find what works best for you but be sure the more you do that positively affects you, the better your brain will be for the long term.