Well, what we all
thrive for is the better versions of ourselves, smarter and wiser.
Historically, the greatest of minds followed a bunch of habits that made the
difference. They inculcated in their environments some of the eccentric
behaviors that helped them remain above the edge. While we all are capable to
do the same, we are actually tied back by impulsive urges and instinctive
yearnings to which we aren’t able to say NO. Even though we know that we need
to put in more time for activities like working on studies and assignments or
some office work or even exercise, we find them not so appealing and instead
end up on social platforms or content media or video streaming. That isn’t
difficult for us.
Enter, Dopamine. This neurotransmitter in our
brain is responsible for how we feel. It makes us feel happy and motivated to
do stuff. It drives us to repeat pleasurable activities. Activities that
release a lot of dopamine makes you motivated to do it again and again. By
contrast, when we see little gain out of an activity, say exercise, for
example; (though it has immense benefits in considerably long period of time)
we are less and less likely to repeat this activity. Hence it is quite easy for
us to watch series in one go, or eating comfort food or chat and surf on social
media for hours while ignore more pressing tasks.
In this “wanting more”, we tend to increase
the threshold of satisfaction we tend to get out of these activities. So if
initially you needed one piece of cake to produce the satisfactory dopamine,
now because you have increased your consumption, you require the whole cake to
satisfy your feel good mood.
Lets check out some of the techniques to get
smarter.
1. Dopamine Detox
Well we all know that excess of anything is
BAD for our body and mind equally. But we miss out on how to undo the wrong we
have already done. Dopamine Detox is a ritual where we consciously resist the
desire to indulge in harmful activities. We eliminate the sources of desire and
indulge ourselves in more productive work though it seems boring and at some
point of time we might even just want to chuck it all and have fun, but still
train our minds to effectively resist all such desires.
Instead we use such desirable activities as
rewards after we have met the limits we set. This conscious check and balance
mechanism will help you to make sure you use your time judiciously.
2. Be bold, no harm in being a dropout
There’s no harm in taking a year for oneself,
exploring and looking out for newer patterns and different ways of living. When
you are no more bonded by the routine tasks and a one minded approach, you tend
to see things that were oblivious to you before.
Leaving any commitment is a big risk, let
alone being a college dropout. Hence it displays sheer bravery to undertake an
uncharted path.it displays ones hunger for being a self learner, being
autodidactic.
3. Creativity blossoms in dark
Darkness lets you widen your imagination. It
helps nourish the thoughts and build on the impressions. According to
researchers, it ticks on a chain of interrelated processes in our brain and
gives a boost to cognitive processing style. In dim light the chaos that
surrounds you disappears and there’s chance for exploration.
Try this out; almost an hour before you go to
bed, turn off the lights or have just a dim source of light. Let your mind
wander for a bit and then eventually let it settle on.. you’ll find yourself
considering creative aspects and it will help find innovative ideas.
Well let’s not forget the pros of light as
well, sun being the absolute source of light, an early morning ritual in first
of lights could be really helpful for logical reasoning and decision making.
4. Cry incessantly
Its best to let out your emotions; whether
its anger or happiness or dejection. Whether your problem is solved or not,
crying helps reduce stress. Emotional tears contain stress hormones and develops
a mental balance. It also triggers production of endorphins (neuropeptides that
help reduce the level of stress)
It is always better to let your emotions out
than to keep them in, catharsis is a practice psychology also recommends.
5. Give it time before you write it down
This last one is especially for the writers
out there. Its always better to let the ideas churn in your mind and let the
thoughts wander before you rush to write it all down. If you write it down as
soon as it comes, the scope for grandeur vanishes. It becomes constrained to
what you had thought the first time. So let it wander before you finally write
it down.
It happened so that when J K Rowling first
got the idea about the much famous Harry Potter story, she wasn’t able to pen
it down instantly and that aided in a better version of it.
Namaste!
If you like this
article make sure to check our other articles, we are sure you would enjoy
them.
And if you do make
sure to like, share the article and comment your views in the comment section
below.
Thank you for all the love.
Comments
Post a Comment