You can increase your intelligence: 5 ways to maximize your cognitive potential | Guest Blog The views expressed are those of the author and are not necessarily those of Scientific American. "One should not pursue goals that are easily achieved. One must develop an instinct for what one can just barely achieve through one’s greatest efforts." —Albert Einstein While Einstein was not a neuroscientist, he sure knew what he was talking about in regards to the human capacity to achieve. Not so many years ago, I was told by a professor of mine that you didn’t have much control over your intelligence. Well, I disagreed. You see, before that point in my studies, I had begun working as a Behavior Therapist, training young children on the autism spectrum. One of my first clients was a little boy w/ PDD-NOS (Pervasive Developmental Delays-Not Otherwise Specified), a mild form of autism. He wasn’t the only child I saw make vast improvements in the years I’ve been a therapist, either. Although the data from those early studies showed dismal results, I wasn’t discouraged. 1. 2. 3. 4. 1. 2. 3.
How 30 Minutes a Day Can Increase Your Intelligence If you ask me, where humans go wrong is with their lack of patience. That, and their recent acquired taste for instant gratification. The reality is that things take time. Richard Branson didn’t become a millionaire overnight. That said, it’s actually pretty easy to improve yourself. Because most people don’t bother. The majority of people don’t do a single thing to improve themselves. So I’ve come up with a new theory: The Half Hour Theory. I love it because it’s actually pretty easy to integrate into your life. This could take the form of half an hour’s reading every day. You may even want to improve the speed of your reading so you can learn faster. This theory could even rely on you taking a half an hour every day spending time on the Internet, researching into something that really interests you. Here’s how to implement The Half Hour Theory: (Note: If you’re not sure how to get started, here’s a handy list of 60 ways to improve yourself in the next 100 days.)
How to Learn Without Memorizing Photo by Edwin Stemp Rote memorization is an inefficient way to learn. Just retaining a single formula can mean pounding the same information into your skull dozens of times. If your computer hard drive had this accuracy, you’d probably throw it out. Unfortunately, you’re stuck with your brain. The good news is that you don’t need to learn by memorization. A few years ago, I noticed that smart people seemed to learn differently than most other people. While there are undoubtedly some genetic advantages that allow some people to learn effortlessly, I think part of this difference in success comes down to strategy. Is Your Brain a File Drawer or a Web of Ideas? A computer stores information as thousands of electrical 1s and 0s in a linear fashion. However, your brain isn’t a sequence of bits and bytes, so this approach doesn’t make sense. Other Forms of Learning There are lots of ways you can learn creatively: 1. Connect ideas together by relating them to something you already understand. 2.
Brain Fitness And Memory Programs, Brain Training - CogniFit What is Mind Mapping? (and How to Get Started Immediately) A mind map is a graphical way to represent ideas and concepts. It is a visual thinking tool that helps structuring information, helping you to better analyze, comprehend, synthesize, recall and generate new ideas. Just as in every great idea, its power lies in its simplicity. In a mind map, as opposed to traditional note taking or a linear text, information is structured in a way that resembles much more closely how your brain actually works. Since it is an activity that is both analytical and artistic, it engages your brain in a much, much richer way, helping in all its cognitive functions. And, best of all, it is fun! So, how does a mind map look like? (click for larger image) This is a mind map about – conveniently enough – mind mapping itself. Benefits and Uses I think I already gave away the benefits of mind mapping and why mind maps work. But what can we use mind maps for? How to Draw a Mind Map Drawing a mind map is as simple as 1-2-3: Some more recommendations: Final Thoughts
How to Focus A Wandering Mind, by Wendy Hasenkamp New research reveals what happens in a wandering mind—and sheds light on the cognitive and emotional benefits of increased focus. We’ve all been there. You’re slouched in a meeting or a classroom, supposedly paying attention, but your mind has long since wandered off, churning out lists of all the things you need to do—or that you could be doing if only you weren’t stuck here… Suddenly you realize everyone is looking your way expectantly, waiting for an answer. But don’t worry—you’re not alone. This suggests it might be good to find ways to reduce these mental distractions and improve our ability to focus. What happens in the wandering mind? For something that happens so often, what do we really know about this process of mind-wandering? For thousands of years, contemplative practices such as meditation have provided a means to look inward and investigate our mental processes. Sounds simple enough, but it’s much easier said than done. The benefits of building focus
12 Things You Never Knew On How To Think Effectively Effective thinking is something that can be practiced and developed over time. Everything begins and ends with the brain-heart connection. How you think either connects or disconnects the two. Here are some ways to think effectively that you never thought could be so easy. 1. “I’m not good enough.” 2. “I’m going to try this.” 3. So if you think you’re a failure, you don’t deserve success or happiness, or you’re not good enough, your subconscious mind is going to steer you in the direction of what you’re thinking. 4. Remember, everything begins and ends with the brain-heart connection. 5. So many great ideas are abandoned because of hesitance or procrastination. 6. So think like this: Thought…Idea…Vision…Action. 7. A very valuable money coach taught me this concept and when I realized it, I became unstuck. 8. For example, in your heart you know you need to set up a budget. 9. Generally, by looking at someone’s heart, you gain a deeper understanding as to their reaction. 10. 11. 12.
How to Memorize Things Quickly People like to joke that the only thing you really “learn” in school is how to memorize. As it turns out, that’s not even the case for most of us. If you go around the room and ask a handful of people how to memorize things quickly, most of them will probably tell you repetition. That is so far from the truth, it’s running for office. If you want to memorize something quickly and thoroughly, repetition won’t cut it; however, recalling something will. The problem is that recalling something requires learning, and we all learn in different ways. Before we start, you need to establish something: are you an auditory, visual, or experiential learner? Step 1: Preparation To optimize your memorization session, pay close attention to which environment you choose. Next, start drinking some tea. As we get older, toxic chemicals will damage our neurons and synapses, leading to memory loss and even Alzheimer’s. Step 2: Record What You’re Memorizing Step 3: Write Everything Down Step 9: Take a break
How to Study Less by Learning Things Once You read over your notes. Then you read them over again. Then you read them over a third time. A lot of study time is wasted because of one problem: you fail to learn things the first time around. Repeatedly going over the same information like putting a band-aid over a sieve. The key to reducing the amount of time you study is simple: learn things the first time you see them, instead of after dozens of repetitions. This is all easier said than done. Step One: Find the Holes If you want to repair a leaky brain, you need to figure out where the holes are. What from this section am I most likely to forget? When you identify weak points, you can invest more time in fixing those instead of wasting time with a blanket studying technique of all information. Step Two: Repair Weak Points Once you’ve identified potential weak-points, you should immediately seek to fix them. Memorizing? Repairing weak points in your understanding isn’t that difficult – if you first know where they are.
How to Memorize Verbatim Text If you are visiting from StumbleUpon and like this article and tool, please consider giving it a thumbs up. Thanks! Memorizing does not have to be as hard as most people make it. In this article we are going to focus on a technique that will let you easily: Memorize a speechMemorize the BibleMemorize linesMemorize Scripture At the end of this article is a Javascript tool that makes it easy to implement this method. Synapses and Neurons and How to Memorize In the simplified model of the brain in this discussion, we’ll be looking at neurons and synapses. When you remember something neurons fire signals down particular synapse pathways to other neurons which in turn fire signals to other neurons. Strong Pathways Synapses appear to exhibit plasticity. For example, consider remembering your home telephone number. Now consider a number that you will have trouble remembering. How to Memorize – Practice Recalling not Repeating This is the crucial concept of any type of memorization.
How to Think Like a Genius Edit Article One Methods:Metaphorming: The Official "Think Like a Genius"® Method There are many ways to classify a genius. But if you look at the historical figures whom most people would consider geniuses, such as Albert Einstein, Leonardo Da Vinci, and Beethoven, you can see one thing they all share in common: they were all able to think in a way different from the mainstream, and thus made connections that no one else did. Ad Steps <img alt="Think Like a Genius Step 1 Version 3.jpg" src=" width="670" height="503">1Love learning. <img alt="Think Like a Genius Step 6 Version 3.jpg" src=" width="670" height="503">6Think differently. We could really use your help! Can you tell us aboutgarage door repair? Can you help usrate articles?
40 websites that will make you cleverer right now The indexed web contains an incredible 14 billion pages. But only a tiny fraction help you improve your brain power. Here are 40 of the best. whizzpast.com – Learn about our awe inspiring past all in one wonderful place. khanacademy.org – Watch thousands of micro-lectures on topics ranging from history and medicine to chemistry and computer science. freerice.com – Help end world hunger by correctly answering multiple-choice quizzes on a wide variety of subjects. artofmanliness.com – Blog/site dedicated to all things manly, great for learning life skills and good insights. unplugthetv.com – Randomly selects an educational video for you to watch. coursera.org – An educational site that works with universities to get their courses on the Internet, free for you to use. mentalfloss.com – Interesting articles guaranteed to make you smile and get you thinking. feelgoodwardrobe.com – Find out how the world of fashion really works and what you can do to combat it. lifehacker.com – Learn to hack life!