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    Unleash your inner genius ... with a pen and a cuddly kitten: How watching cute animal videos, having a messy desk and writing can reduce stress levels

    Carol
    Carol
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    Unleash your inner genius ... with a pen and a cuddly kitten: How watching cute animal videos, having a messy desk and writing can reduce stress levels    Empty Unleash your inner genius ... with a pen and a cuddly kitten: How watching cute animal videos, having a messy desk and writing can reduce stress levels

    Post  Carol Sat May 14, 2016 7:03 pm

    Unleash your inner genius ... with a pen and a cuddly kitten: How watching cute animal videos, having a messy desk and writing can reduce stress levels    2D24883E00000578-0-image-m-3_1463235634790

    Unleash your inner genius ... with a pen and a cuddly kitten: How watching cute animal videos, having a messy desk and writing can reduce stress levels 






    While researching my latest book Brainhack, I’ve poured through countless academic papers and scientific studies to find the simple tips and tricks we can all adopt to transform the way we think and make more of our brains.  From moaning less to watching cute kitten videos on YouTube, these tips are proven to unlock your inner Einstein, making you smarter, more productive and more creative… 
     

    Unleash your inner genius ... with a pen and a cuddly kitten: How watching cute animal videos, having a messy desk and writing can reduce stress levels    2D24883E00000578-0-image-m-3_1463235634790


    +2
    If you feel guilty for watching YouTube videos of cute kittens or adorable babies at your desk, don’t.
    1) STOP MOANING
    Too much whingeing is bad for the brain. Research shows moaning for more than 30 minutes leads to higher levels of the stress hormone cortisol, hampering how brain cells communicate and speeding up cell death. Over time, repeated bouts of negativity shrink the hippocampus, the area of the brain that deals with long-term memories and spatial navigation. The trick is not to moan, but complain. Complaining is a constructive, positive action and you’re much more likely to get the gripe out of your system.


    2) HAVE A MESSY DESK
    Our brains are very impressionable so the unconscious cues of working in a messy room make us think ‘messy’. This disorderly thinking is an ideal state to be in when trying to come up with innovative and unexpected ideas. A Northwestern University experiment looked at how working in a messy or tidy room influenced creativity. Researchers found that subjects in a messy room drew more creative pictures and solved a challenging brainteaser faster than subjects in a tidy room.


    3) WATCH A KITTEN VIDEO
    If you feel guilty for watching YouTube videos of cute kittens or adorable babies at your desk, don’t. Funny or feelgood videos can relieve stress. A study found 30 minutes of watching such clips lowered cortisol levels by 67 per cent and adrenaline by 35 per cent.


    4) PICK UP A PEN
    Compared to typing, writing uses more of the brain. On a keyboard, one tap creates an entire letter, while writing uses several strokes for each letter, activating areas of brain responsible for thinking and language. In a UCLA study half a group of students took longhand notes in a lecture and half used a laptop. The students with handwritten notes had a stronger conceptual understanding of the subject and where to apply the information, compared to those who took laptop notes.


    The other benefit of pen and paper is avoiding the distraction of the internet – it has been found that students with laptops waste as much as 40 per cent of their time on unrelated websites.


    5) BE MORE SARCASTIC
    Far from being the lowest form of wit, being sarcastic or listening to someone who is sarcastic can make you more creative. It involves using language areas on the left side of the brain to interpret the meaning of words, and the frontal lobes and right side to understand the emotional and social context.


    US researchers testing the effects of making and receiving sarcastic comments on 300 people found 75 per cent of people who had been the butt of sarcastic remarks came up with the right solution in creative problem-solving tests, compared to only 25 per cent who received sincere comments. Some 64 per cent of those who made sarcastic comments were also correct, compared to 30 per cent of a control group.


    6) HAVE A NAP
    Siestas help solidify memories. When a memory is first recorded in the hippocampus, which converts short-term memories into long-term ones, it’s still fragile and can be easily forgotten. Napping pushes the memory into the neocortex, the brain’s more permanent storage area. A University of Adelaide study found that a ten- to 15-minute nap boosted performance and alertness for up to two hours after waking.


    7) TAKE A BREAK
    A study by tech company the Draugheim group found that the most productive employees were those who took frequent breaks: 17 minutes for every 52 minutes of work, to be precise. And you could reap the benefits of taking a break from work altogether.


    Ferran Adria, owner and head chef of El Bulli, voted the world’s best restaurant five times, shut his restaurant six months a year to give kitchen staff time to experiment with new dishes. ‘Now we will eat knowledge,’ he said.


    Unleash your inner genius ... with a pen and a cuddly kitten: How watching cute animal videos, having a messy desk and writing can reduce stress levels    30D1013C00000578-0-image-a-4_1463235718440


    +2
    Studies show regular activity can reduce your chances of getting Alzheimer’s by as much as 20 per cent


    Cool MAKE A DONE LIST
    To-do lists are about goals, a done list is about achievements. The brain unconsciously changes a to-do list into a ‘what you haven’t done list’, creating stress and anxiety. A done list creates positive associations, making you feel more positive about yourself.


    9) TAKE SOME EXERCISE
    Most people think it’s cerebral activities like reading and studying that improve our minds. But exercise also has a huge effect on brain function. Studies show regular activity can reduce your chances of getting Alzheimer’s by as much as 20 per cent, while a brisk stroll will lower levels of cortisol.


    10) THINK LIKE A CHILD
    Simply imagining yourself as a free-thinking, imaginative seven-year-old can make you more creative. A study asked a group of students to write an essay on the same subject, but half were asked to write it from the perspective of themselves as a seven-year-old. They were all then asked to complete a test of creative thinking, with those who had imagined themselves as a child showing significantly higher levels of originality.


    Brainhack: Tips And Tricks To Unleash Your Brain’s Full Potential by Neil Pavitt is published by John Wiley and Sons Ltd, £10.99. To get your copy for £8.24 call 0844 571 0640 or visit www.mailbookshop.co.uk by May 22.   



    _________________
    What is life?
    It is the flash of a firefly in the night, the breath of a buffalo in the wintertime. It is the little shadow which runs across the grass and loses itself in the sunset.

    With deepest respect ~ Aloha & Mahalo, Carol
    Pris
    Pris


    Posts : 1887
    Join date : 2015-04-24

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    Post  Pris Sat May 14, 2016 7:34 pm

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    Bravo!! Huge Grin

    Unleash your inner genius ... with a pen and a cuddly kitten: How watching cute animal videos, having a messy desk and writing can reduce stress levels    C32dee57e1b6e97a4892d96af744b8fd
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    Carol
    Carol
    Admin
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    Posts : 31564
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    Unleash your inner genius ... with a pen and a cuddly kitten: How watching cute animal videos, having a messy desk and writing can reduce stress levels    Empty Re: Unleash your inner genius ... with a pen and a cuddly kitten: How watching cute animal videos, having a messy desk and writing can reduce stress levels

    Post  Carol Sat May 14, 2016 8:08 pm

    I thought of you when I posted this Pris. Cheers cheers


    _________________
    What is life?
    It is the flash of a firefly in the night, the breath of a buffalo in the wintertime. It is the little shadow which runs across the grass and loses itself in the sunset.

    With deepest respect ~ Aloha & Mahalo, Carol
    Pris
    Pris


    Posts : 1887
    Join date : 2015-04-24

    Unleash your inner genius ... with a pen and a cuddly kitten: How watching cute animal videos, having a messy desk and writing can reduce stress levels    Empty Re: Unleash your inner genius ... with a pen and a cuddly kitten: How watching cute animal videos, having a messy desk and writing can reduce stress levels

    Post  Pris Mon May 16, 2016 4:56 am

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    Hey, Carol -- how did you know I have a messy desk? Insanely Happy

    I admit I've been on a bit of a roll lately.  You are very tolerant. Unleash your inner genius ... with a pen and a cuddly kitten: How watching cute animal videos, having a messy desk and writing can reduce stress levels    Foryou


    Btw, the article suggests anyone can just get more creative if they have a messy desk.

    I live with someone who has a tidy desk.  It's their personality type.
    Telling them to have a messy desk to 'get ideas flowing' is just not going to happen.

    We are what we are.  And, it's all good. Big Grin 2




    Right-brain:

    Unleash your inner genius ... with a pen and a cuddly kitten: How watching cute animal videos, having a messy desk and writing can reduce stress levels    Cat-on-messy-desk



    Left-brain::

    Unleash your inner genius ... with a pen and a cuddly kitten: How watching cute animal videos, having a messy desk and writing can reduce stress levels    1cdc17f26465d8cfcfd3ca4be802e2d1
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    mudra
    mudra


    Posts : 23196
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    Post  mudra Mon May 16, 2016 12:51 pm

    In my living space I have a preference to something that ressembles more Monet's gardens than the Chateau de Versailles ones.

    Unleash your inner genius ... with a pen and a cuddly kitten: How watching cute animal videos, having a messy desk and writing can reduce stress levels    Large

    Unleash your inner genius ... with a pen and a cuddly kitten: How watching cute animal videos, having a messy desk and writing can reduce stress levels    Jardins

    A semi trimmed natural environment is what works best for me. Cat and dog love it as much as plants do too.

    Unleash your inner genius ... with a pen and a cuddly kitten: How watching cute animal videos, having a messy desk and writing can reduce stress levels    6_w641h478

    Love from me
    mudra
    Pris
    Pris


    Posts : 1887
    Join date : 2015-04-24

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    Post  Pris Tue May 17, 2016 5:26 am

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    Lol!  I like the comparison between Monet's gardens and the Chateau de Versailles!  As far as gardens are concerned, I, too, prefer nature with just a slight trimming. I love you
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