Hello dear friends!
I pray you had a wonderful New Year!
In the spirit of setting goals or resolutions I am putting some great intention and DO behind my desires – with God’s help, of course!
I have been known to have too much occupying my mind causing me to loose focus… One of my goals for 2012 is to become organized – I would say more organized, however, I do not feel that I really am at this point. I am also looking to grow my businesses so that I may be back on track and in the right direction… I came across this article and I believe it might assist us all a bit in those areas that we wish to succeed. While I am not big on Science, there are some things here that I am able to open my mind to (you see, there I go already – applying some of the things ;-) ) and see that there are some things here that prove to be useful… Meditation for me comes in the form of prayer J ~ Have a look see and see if it applies to you or helps a bit!
Happy New Year 2012!
your constant companion,
~deirdra -xo
Hello from Dr. Paul Hammerness and Margaret Moore, aka Coach Meg. Together we have written a new book,"Organize Your Mind, Organize Your Life," [Harlequin, $16.95] that explores brain science and offers practical self-coaching solutions that you can use to make 2012 a year of exceptional focus and accomplishment, leaving behind your distracted and disorganized mind. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/margaret-moore/be-more-productive_b_1167867.html?ncid=edlinkusaolp00000003#s571134&title=The_Big_Myth
The Big Myth: Multi-tasking works
The Science: The brain was designed to focus on just one task at a time The brain was not built for multi-tasking. Juggling emails, texts, phone calls, work projects, and any other "ball" that comes along is beyond the design of our brain's software. The brain works by focusing its attention on one task at a time. When you ask your brain to multi-task, your attention gets sprayed and splattered across many tasks, none of which get the full power of your brain to be organized, productive, and creative. By the end of the day you ask yourself, why didn't I get more done? WOW, that's big news. If multi-tasking causes a disorganized mind, how am I going to learn to uni-task and get more done?? Here are six "Rules of Order" from our new book that can lead you to an organized mind, a mind that makes full use of the software that comes installed in your brain, ready to go.
Rule of Order #1
The Science: Tame your emotional frenzy Before you start to focus your undivided attention on one thing at a time, tame your negative emotions. Stress, worry, frustration, or irritation invade and impair the thinking areas of your brain so you can't focus, think clearly, or learn. Calming your negative emotions is the first step toward getting organized. Self-Coaching Solution: Name your emotions and take good care of your body Begin by noticing and naming your emotional state, e.g. "I feel frustrated." This simple acknowledgment helps your thinking brain get back in charge. Look for patterns of when and how you react negatively. Maybe your teenager's messy room sends you into a tailspin. Recognizing that your frustration is over-the-top helps you put your thinking brain back in charge. When we rest or exercise, or calm our minds by breathing deeply or meditating, or when we get a good night's sleep, our emotional frenzy can lift, allowing the prefrontal cortex to work better so that we are ready for a productive focus.
Rule of Order #2
The Science: Sustain your focus, one task at a time The brain is remarkable in its ability to focus, to extract incredible detail from your environment, to filter out the background 'noise' of distractions, and keep you focused on the task at hand. Self-Coaching Solution: Declare your intention and set up good conditions for your uni-focus. Now that your mind is calm, identify one task and one task only. Declare your goal for a focused session. Your intention may be to write a memo to your colleagues on a new initiative, prepare a new dinner recipe, or help your daughter with her homework. Turn off your phone and email, shut the door, and set the timer for 30-60 minutes.
Rule of Order #3
The Science: Apply the brakes. The brain is designed to help you stop on a dime. The brain can stop a random thought, an unnecessary action, and even an instinctive emotion from derailing you and getting you off track. Your brain is always scanning your internal and external environment, even when you are focused on a particular task. There will always be distractions lurking: wayward thoughts, emotions, sounds, or interruptions. To manage your focus, use your brain's sophisticated accelerator and brake pedals. Self-Coaching Solution: Aware, Breathe, Choose Sometimes it's important to respond to a pressing distraction, like a phone call from your boss. You need to stop focusing on the first task and shift to the second. But for distractions that can wait, it's important to be able to acknowledge them and let them go. After a while, your focus can get stuck, like an accelerator pedal stuck to the floor, reducing your productivity. Then it's important to shift focus to give your brain a break. Perhaps run a quick errand. When a distraction arrives, try the ABC method - become Aware of the options of Stop? or Go? Breathe deeply, consider. What does your heart say? Your head say? Choose thoughtfully: Stop? or GO?
Rule of Order #4
The Science: Mold information. Your brain is designed to store a bunch of ideas in short term memory (aka "working memory"). Accessing your short-term memory, turning over various elements in your mind, helps you problem-solve, generate new ideas and insights, and see new patterns. It is like a virtual desktop, where you can remember ideas, real world people and places etc. - even when they are no longer literally in front of you. Self-Coaching Solution: Improve access to your working memory. Interesting fact: the same strategies that allow you to tame frenzy enable you to better access your working memory - exercise, deep breathing or meditation, and a good night's sleep. Add to that list: write things down, perhaps in a journal. Another way to improve your working memory is to invite and listen with an open mind to opposing points of view, for example, decide you'll watch both CNN and FoxNews.
Rule of Order #5
The Science: Shift ALL of your attention from one task to the next Now it's time to move your focus to a new task, perhaps you are going to chat with a colleague, or call your mother. Instead of having the discussion while you're still typing your memo, move all of your attention fully to the next task and give it your undivided attention. This brain skill, called "set-shifting," allows you to leave behind the last task and leap to the new one with a fresh and productive focus. Self-Coaching Solution: Take a break to increase productivity After an extended period of concentration you can run out of energy and new ideas. The brain tires. Taking a break by shifting your focus completely allows you to hit the refresh button. Sometimes a change is as good as a rest - shift your focus to a new task and leave the last one behind, completely, for now. Shifting your mind into your body by exercising is a great set-shift of focus that can lead to new creative insights. Go for a walk or a run. Out of the blue you may have an uninvited and brilliant idea, a new approach to something, or think of another ingredient to add to your dinner recipe.
Rule of Order #6
The Science & Self-Coaching Solution: Connect the dots - put it all together You've learned how to tame your frenzy, and focus your attention on one thing at a time. You can handle distractions. Your working memory is ready when you need it. You are nimble and can shift from one task to the next. You take breaks, move your body, and shift your focus to invite new ideas, insights, and connections. Together, these steps will take you to a place where you can see the big picture. You no longer feel that you can't see the forest for the trees. Enjoy the whole new vista that opens up when your brain is organized, creative, and productive!
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