Keeping Your Brain Healthy: Brain-FX

Right- Left Brain Preferences at Work

Dr. Ellen Weber from the Brain-Based Business Blog writes a couple of great posts about the differences in our work styles, based on the areas of the brain we use the most.

Those that favor the right side of the brain:

1). Solve more problems by combining facts…images…and ideas others offer… to lead the group with better solutions….

2). Process new ideas and throw in spontaneous answers to complex problems… the kind that lift eyebrows in a discussion….

3). Design your office so that it inspires better work and reflects the art you most enjoy….

4). Use facial gestures and body language that win you deals that others dream of….

5). Build friendships and lead others in ways they find a willingness to follow….

6). Recognize faces of clients and former associates and remember music that moved your day to new heights….

7). Gather the parts and bits all around you into a vision that other can see and that can take your business to the peaks….

On the other hand, those that prefer acting in more rational ways may use the left side of their brain more frequently:

1). Deal with project details… by breaking them down to one at a time
2). Process information such as an action plan into linear and sequential steps
3). Plan and organize a week for with time in mind
4). Articulate well through speaking … reading … and writing
5). Remember and apply key facts as well as solve arithmetic operations
6). Recognize words and numbers to complete business projects
7). Think logically and in ways that analyze… sort… and use other people’s ideas

The left brain too often get a bum wrap when companies take it for granted in their efforts to use more right brain creativity. Yet, as your storeroom for reason … this side holds power tools for writers… engineers … information technologies and others who need its logical … problem solving … no-nonsense approaches…. It’s also useful to those who plan and structure facts or who compare differences….

Can you identify with this, recognize your work preferences?

Use It Or Lose It: More Research

There's a great series of posts over at Dr. Ellen Weber's Brain Based Business blog about aging and mental exercise to keep your brain healthy. Dr. Weber writes about a book, Inside the Brain by Ronald Kotulak.

Here's an excerpt: Contrary to conventional wisdom…Kotulak said… people do not lose brain cells… in huge numbers… because of age. So why does it appear otherwise at times? Too many seniors allow their brain functions to stick… slog… and rust out… because of disuse.

Brain cells are now found to be sustained and stimulated by physically changing your brain through experiences and education well beyond the golden years… a new concept…

So my question to you readers is: "What have you done lately to exercise your brain?"

I'm learning to play World of Warcraft with my husband. Computer games are a great way to work out your brain, especially there there is some sequential reasoning involved, along with visual spatial organizing and hand-eye coordination. (So far I have completed some quests and advanced to level 9; and I've avoided getting killed by a couple of scary beasts.)

And you? What are you doing to keep your brain healthy?

Cell Phones & Your Brain: Think About It

They keep turning up research that shows there is electro-magnetic stimulation to your brain caused by holding a cell phone to your ear, yet most people ignore it.

To me, it's like knowing cigarettes cause cancer, and continuing to smoke. It reminds me of how people deplore the price of gasoline, while filling up their huge SUVs.

But maybe that's just because I feel a little holier-than-thou, having given up cell phone usage a while back. I only use it for out-going calls in cases of urgency. I'll admit it can be a great help for communications while out of the office. But to use it for casual conversations, or while driving: no-no.

Here's more research to deter you from frequently using a cell phone, from the Brain Based Business blog:

A recent study on cell phones shows the side effect still excite parts of the brain. Is this good or bad…? Unfortunately researchers can’t say for sure. Check out the IBN Live reports.

Your Brain at Work: More Brain Breaks

This post comes from Laura Ricci, who has a neat blog about Winning Ideas at work. Here's an excerpt from a post on May 5, 2006:

Burnout is a biologic reality, not a psychological weakness.

The brain works by creating pathways for specific projects. Communication is passed between cells along these synaptic pathways by electrical charges. The gap between cells has a conducting property. Think of it as a gel that holds a charge, similar to a battery.

Synaptic pathways wear out. When the synaptic pathway is fired continuously, like your last proposal, the gel loses its charge after awhile. Communication slows. By the time you notice a slowdown, burnout has already occurred.

The gel will re-charge, but it takes a day or several, and the pathway must be closed to most traffic.

Laura recommends taking plenty of time at lunch, eating well, even a 20 minute nap.

Gosh this is the 3rd post recently about taking breaks; do we see a theme here? When is my next vacation? Oh yes, June 2. Gotta go take a break now.

Brain Break: Necessary for Learning

Rats do it, why shouldn't we? Scientist are learning what goes on in the brain of rats while learning to successfully complete a maze. And, this explains why all those time outs in sports pay off.

The experiment: Put lab rats into unfamiliar mazes and monitored their behaviors upon completion of their exploration.

Findings: The rats routinely rested after each 'test.' But their short-term memory neurons were busy at work repeatedly reviewing the maze's path - in reverse - at speeds up to 10 times faster than the original experience.

Interpretation: "This implies that it's not just during an experience that learning occurs," says David Foster, head of the research team. "If we're right, the period after the experience is just as important, but maybe more important."

"Don't feel guilty about the breaks you've been sneaking at work - they could be helping you learn." So reports Elise Kleeman in her May 2006 article in Discover magazine, titled, "Relax and Think Like a Rat," based on the work of some neuroscientists at MIT.

Next time you look at Roger Federer during a changeover, you know what his brain is doing during those 90 seconds: learning what he needs to do next.

(This post was originally seen in Barry Zweibel's Gottagettablog! under the title "In favor of (yet another) coffee break" .)

Barry writes, "All of those late-morning or mid-afternoon Starbucks' run might not be such a bad thing. Not only do they provide that added caffeine kick, but they might also be providing us the opportunity to integrate the day's learning into our longer-term memories."

Makes sense to me. I didn't really need another excuse for taking a break, but this will do nicely.

Stressed? Take a People-Break

Positive human-to-human contact reduces the blood levels of the stress hormones epinephrine, norepinephrine, and cortisol.

Science is studying the effects of spending time online and have found higher levels of depression and loneliness in people who spend even a few hours per week connected to the Internet. Now, I have lots of questions about that study, mainly that this doesn't prove any cause and effect. If you are a person who is lonely, you might want to spend extra time on the computer anyway.

And I know some computer gamers who go online to feel the strong effects of stress through online games such as World of Warcraft... I won't go into the addiction thing here.

But here's my point: When people are spending most of their time online, or communicating via email versus face-to-face, the brain is not exposed as much to conditions that trigger the release of certain hormones: oxytocin, vasopressin, dopamine, and serotonin.

These chemical are known to enhance trust, bonding, attention and pleasure. And serotonin reduces fear and worry.

Think about how much less time you spend interacting with humans face-to-face. And then consider that taking a people-break might enhance your mood.