Spring will soon be at our doorstep. This is a time of year when many people are considering new ‘seeds’ they would like to plant in their lives.
How about you? Are you feeling drawn to making changes or weeding out aspects that don’t serve you? If so, I have some good news!
Your brain is already doing a lot of this work for you. Just like a gardener, your brain does its best to cultivate a healthy and a well fortified “inner-terrain”. It will strategically create new neurons and neural networks and prune away old ones to keep itself as efficient and as up to date as possible.
Your brain however, can only do so much on its own. Since you are the culmination of your thoughts, choices and actions – you can (and must) contribute to these neural efforts by implementing healthy habits and strategies.
Yielding a rewarding and meaningful harvest or getting stuck in a place of scarcity and dissatisfaction; the choice is yours.
TO GET THE MOST OUT OF YOUR BRAIN & YOUR LIFE:
GET REAL:
I notice a lot of people ‘saying’ they want change and ‘day dream’ about change, but they are not ‘making change’. I think this is because the idea of change is a lot less intimidating than implementing the necessary actions required for it to happen.
Great news! Your system is process-oriented and it can only take the next tangible step. Real change does not happen in one full sweep – those scenarios are the exception to the rule. For the most part, change is gradual and one step leads to the next.
What to do: Taking a first step can be as simple as breathing more deeply, eating healthier, getting more sleep, spending time in nature, engaging in more exercise, de-cluttering your space. These types of actions will galvanize a more positive mindset, grow your brain and be fuel for change.
GET OUT OF THE BOX:
If your personal reality was described as a ‘box’, do you live contently inside of that box, are you attempting to get out of it, or are you an adventure seeker who regularly lives on the outside of the box? Most people prefer to stay safely within the comfort and predictability of their box, some will venture out occasionally and rarer are those that prefer to live outside of it.
Great News! While a certain amount of structure and routine is absolutely essential for a sound and balanced life; novelty is where new growth happens. Novelty is considered to be incredible fertilizer for the brain as it spikes brain plasticity and creates new neurons. This is what makes it possible to regenerate ourselves, slow down and reverse the aging process and be the best we can be!
What to do: If you are serious about change occurring, you must accept the fact that things are going to look and feel different and tap into your neuroplasticity powers. Start by making small tweaks to your daily routine such as eating a food than you don’t usually pick, taking a new route to work, listening to a different genre of music, etc. By activating and building those little change muscles; bigger changes will feel more welcome.
BE A MISFIT:
When it comes to society and social expectations, do you typically aim to fit in and please others, do you walk the middle ground or do you carve out your own unique pathways?
According to research, individuals fall into one of three categories and can either have a strong inclination to follow rules and do what is expected of them, question rules and authority or strongly rebel against them. What about you?
In my opinion, there is a time for rules, there is a time to question them and there is a time to break them. This would be based on how healthfully they are serving a person or a situation.
Great News! While it won’t serve our home or family life to be rebellious with change making on a regular basis, we can all benefit from taking a closer look at how and why we are doing things. Most of our lives are built on unconscious repeated habits. Those habits can change once we start to become more aware of ourselves and our actions.
What to do: Practise being mindful of your thoughts, your body sensations and your actions throughout the course of your day. Do this without the goal of changing anything, just for the purpose of becoming more aware. You will be amazed at what you learn and how easy it becomes to make change happen when your awareness muscles get stronger.
To sign off with, here is a quote that inspires me and my inner rebel. Thought you may enjoy it too…
“Here’s to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The round pegs in the square holes. The ones who see things differently…Because they change things. They push the human race forward. And while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius. Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do.” – Rob Siltanen
To your growth!
Jill