Free Brain Exercises
Most people are probably familiar with going to the gym and working out to get their body into shape. What's not so well known is the fact that your brain can also benefit from a workout program.
You can think of your brain as a muscle. The more you use it, the stronger it gets. On the flip side, if it is not being used it can become weaker. Pretty soon you're forgetting birthdays, anniversaries, and more often saying to yourself "now why did I come in here?"
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Before getting into the mental work you may consider physical exercise. Any type of physical exercise has been shown to increase overall mental performance. The physiology behind this includes increasing blood flow to the brain and stimulating the growth of new brain cells. Aside from gaining intelligence, exercise has been shown to relieve depression by increasing the brain's production of serotonin(what anti-depressants usually give you more of).
1. This will help with vocabulary usage and with brainstorming. (This is a great game for children also)
Pick one letter of the alphabet and try to write as many words as you can that begin with that letter. You only get one minute to think.
2. This one will help to improve learning and thought process.
Restrict the use of your dominant hand for one hour per day. Pick up your drinks, cook, and even write with the least dominant hand. This will cause the least dominant side of your brain to become more active. For the right handers, you may surprise yourself with more creativity. The lefties will experience more detail and logic in their thinking.
3. Do you want to think like a scientist, doctor, lawyer, etc...?
Read something that's out of your mental league as often as possible. If you are used to reading a Mens Health or Cosmo magazine, try reading the research articles cited in their text.
For example, many magazines will write a story and say "research shows...", and then list the source of that research. Look for the journal that publishes the article and read it. You'll find that the reading will be more complex(unlike the version a magazine may give you), and you will soon begin to think more like the scientists and less like the average Joe.
You don't always have to read research articles. All we are saying is to go for the stuff you may think is too complicated to understand. You will be surprised how quickly your brain will adapt.
Math Exercise
more to come...
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No one fully understands how memory works in the brain. However, if we use what is known, our own memory can be greatly enhanced.
The three stages of memory formation and retrieval are: acquisition(encoding), consolidation(storage), and retrieval. You may only need improvement in one of those categories.
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Do yourself a favor and pay attention. Don't waste your time with something if you aren't going to give it your full attention. Learn to focus, which may take some practice, but it will save you time in the long run.
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Quick recap. After taking in some new information, allow your mind to store it by recalling and relating the information to your own life. This helps find a place for your mind to find the information later.
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Have a discussion. Talk about what you have recently learned with friends or family. Sometimes teaching what you know helps solidify your own understanding.
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Take notes. If you are a visual learner, new information may not sink in until your eyes can see it on paper.
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..Take fewer notes. For those who are auditory learners, focus only on the sounds. Taking fewer notes may actually help because you are more likely to remember what you've heard rather than what you've seen on paper.
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Make a habit. If your current habit is losing things (keys, wallet, etc...), then start a new habit of placing all those things in the same place every time.
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Third time is a charm. Remembering new names can be tough, but here is a trick that most sales people know well. Say the new name three times in a conversation to make it stick. For Example: "Nice to meet you John....So John, tell me what you do for a living....One more thing, John.."
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Give new acquaintances a nickname (only in your mind) like Sally Jally, Ron John, Billy The Kid. Sounds funny, but it works!
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Treat new acquaintances like family. If you have a relative with the same first name just say to yourself "Uncle John, Aunt Sally, Cousin Billy.."
- Get some sleep and stay healthy. As we mentioned before, a healthy body leads to a healthy mind. If you really want to be a SharpNoggin consider doing some exercise.
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Easy Math
Get Smart.