| With the development of new technologies, we | | | | and musical ability is larger than in the brains of |
| are able to obtain more and mores details of the | | | | non-musicians. |
| brain in action. What is being revealed is causing a | | | | - Buddhist monks who practice long hours of |
| revolution in our understanding of the way the | | | | compassion mediation, increase the thickness of |
| brain functions. Until this explosion in knowledge | | | | there prefrontal lobes. This is the area that |
| most scientists believed the brain under went | | | | controls concentration, free will and compassion. |
| rapid development in early childhood up to age of | | | | Creating Beneficial Ruts |
| five to seven years old. Then the rate of change | | | | The groups of brain cells I talked about earlier are |
| slowed until we reached our early twenties, after | | | | more correctly called neural nets because they |
| which time all improvement stopped and the only | | | | are a network of neurons (brain cells). The more |
| change now was its slow decline due to aging that | | | | your have the same sorts of thoughts you |
| accelerated in later years. I have to admit | | | | strengthen the existing connections between |
| although I accepted what the neuro-scientists | | | | neurons and stimulate the growth of new |
| were telling me, it was a view of my future that | | | | connections to bring more neurons into the neural |
| did not leave me jumping for joy. Fortunately a | | | | net. The stronger a particular neural net becomes |
| much more positive picture about the brain | | | | the more likely you are to think the thoughts that |
| functions is starting to emerge. We are finding | | | | are associated with it. |
| that the brain is continually rewiring itself in | | | | Studies have shown that the majority of us think |
| response to our thoughts feelings and perceptions. | | | | the same thoughts day in day out. We find |
| We are also just beginning to discover that you | | | | ourselves caught in the mental ruts we cal habits. |
| were born with your full complement of brain cell | | | | Although this may seem depressing. Once you |
| that you began losing from the day you were | | | | understand what is happening to you can follow |
| born is not true. Stem cells in the brain create | | | | two life enhancing strategies. |
| new cells. | | | | *The first is to deliberately expose yourself to |
| Use it or lose it | | | | novel experiences and keep developing new skills |
| The same message you hear in the gym applies | | | | like playing a musical instrument or learn a new |
| to the brains equivalent of physical exercise. When | | | | language. This stops your existing ruts from |
| ever you have the same type of thought or | | | | getting to deep and maintains your brains |
| perform an activity like a golf swing the same | | | | neuro-plasticity. Keeping you open the new and |
| group of brain cells fire. The more a group of | | | | potentially better ideas. |
| brain cells fire together the stronger there | | | | *The second is to create ruts or habits that are |
| connections become. This is why practicing a skill | | | | beneficial and improve your life. |
| or revising a subject increases your proficiency. | | | | The second strategy comes in two parts the first |
| The reverse is also true, if you stop playing golf | | | | is to reduce the strength of the neural nets of |
| the connections between the brain cells | | | | the negative habits you want to eliminate. The |
| responsible for your golf skills become weaker | | | | second part is to strengthen the neural net or the |
| over time and some of the brain cells will start | | | | habit you wish to acquire. Let me give you an |
| making connections to groups of cells for skills | | | | example to illustrate. Suppose you want to |
| you are practicing. Like the old saying about never | | | | eliminate the negative habit of complaining and |
| forgetting to ride a bicycle there will always be | | | | replace it with the habit of positive thinking. So |
| some brain cells that remain connected so the skill | | | | now every time you find yourself start to |
| will never completely disappear and it you start to | | | | complain your repeat a positive thought mantra in |
| practice again you will regain your skill much faster | | | | your head something like, "I am happy", "I can |
| than it originally took to learn the skill in the first | | | | find a positive out come to this situation" or just |
| place. | | | | think of something in your life that you are |
| Brain scans have shown that when we devote a | | | | grateful for. |
| lot of time to practicing a skill the areas of the | | | | It as been shown that if you repeat a behaviour |
| brain that controls that skill increases in size as the | | | | for 21 days you will have weakened the |
| brain grows new connections. The studies show | | | | connections in the old habit and strengthen the |
| - In musicians the area of the brain known as | | | | connections in the new habit that this becomes |
| broca's area, which is associated with language | | | | the new behaviour. |