How can we harness the right frame of mind to make money and improve productivity? And when it comes to landing your next big deal, which frame of mind would be your better asset?
Our minds are divided into the ‘animal’, reflexive mind and the rational, ‘executive’ mind. We use our animal minds between 90% and 98% of the time — our executive, rational minds a mere 2% to 10% of the time. Imagine what you could produce if you could add just one more percentage point to your own executive category. Consider these five ways to cajole your reluctant executive mind into action and harness your brain power to maximise productivity:
1. Lead it
Direct your brain to focus on something. The more you focus, the more insights you get.
2. Weed it
Avoid messy thinking by moderating what’s on your mind. If you don’t, your brain might take the break it needs without asking your permission to go into the reactive animal brain.
3. Speed it
Give your memory a break and speed up your thinking. Instead of trying to remember all that you have to do, write it down. By redirecting this energy you will have more to draw on to be creative and productive.
4. Rest it
Daytime rest is as critical to fuelling the brain as night-time sleep. Taking regular quiet intervals to allow your executive mind to wander and reflect helps to prime it for the more critical tasks of thinking and problem solving.
5. Feed it
Your brain operates on glucose and oxygen. It eats up about 20% of your total body glucose. If you’re a hard-charging person who skips meals, or eats foods that are high in fat, you’re not giving your brain a chance to bring in the next really big idea.