In order to enhance your creativity, your body and mind should be operating at peak efficiency. Try these brainjuicers to boost your brain power.
1. Make sure you exercise.
Exercise juices up the brain with nutrients in the form of glucose. The more glucose it uses, the more active the brain. It increases oxygen in the bloodstream that is delivered to the brain, releases endorphins into the bloodstream (the runner's high) and increases nerve connections to the brain.
2. Use rhythmic activities to give your brain a chance to incubate.
Any rhythmic activity such as running, walking, swimming, scrubbing, chopping quiets mindful chatter, allowing your imagination to flow. Einstein got so many ideas while showering he installed waterproof material to record his ideas.
3. Listen to music, especially music from Mozart's era.
Music forges new neural pathways that stimulate your creativity. Research shows that music trains the brain for higher forms of thinking. In a study at U.C. Irvine, researchers studied two groups of three year olds. One group studied piano and sang daily in chorus. The other group did not. In eight months the musical three year olds were adept puzzle masters. They scored 80% higher in spatial intelligence than the non musical group. (Newsweek Feb.19, 1996)
4. Try Aroma Therapy to activate your brain.
One day, as I was falling asleep, while listening to endless speeches at a conference, my brain suddenly perked up when I caught a whiff of lemon from someone's cologne. I immediately felt alert and found it much easier to pay attention to the presenter. I discovered aroma therapy really is useful and I have used it ever since revitalize or to relax. Energizers include peppermint, cypress and lemon. Relaxants: ylang ylang, geranium and rose. A few drops of essential oils in your bath or in a diffuser will do the trick. You can also put a drop or two in a cotton ball or hanky and inhale. One caveat for the workplace; make sure no-one is allergic to the oils before you use them.
5. Eat foods high in Vitamin B.
Vitamin B is essential for brain power. Sources include peas, beans, liver, kidney, chicken and eggs.
6. Get your minerals.
Boron is essential for memory and attention. Sources include apples, pears and green leafy vegetables.
7. Instead of coffee breaks try gingko biloba and gotu kola herbal teas.
Gingko biloba and gotu kola increase blood flow to the brain. (Check with your doctor first before taking these herbs.)
8. Capture your daydreams.
Daydreaming is a way to incubate the components of a problem and uncover solutions. How can you apply the images and thoughts of your daydream to the project you are working on? How could the image be a metaphor? Can your daydream show you a new perspective?
9. Play with passion!
You can't do great work without personal fulfillment. When people are growing through learning and creativity, they are much more fulfilled and give 127% more to their work. Delight yourself and you delight the world. Remember what you loved to do as a child and bring the essence of that activity into your work. This is a clue to your genius; to your natural gifts and talents. da Vinci, Edison, Einstein and Picasso all loved to play and they loved to explore.
10. Build a brain trust.
Surround yourself with inspiring people from a wide variety of fields who encourage you and stimulate your creativity. Read magazines from a wide variety of fields. Make connections between people, places and things, to discover new business opportunities, and to find solutions to your problems. There is a famous story about the inventor of Velcro, who happened to have an interest in botany. One day he was walking through a field, when he noticed burrs sticking to his socks. He wondered what made them stick and picked one up to examine its structure. Well you know what happened...
A NOTE OF CAUTION: Consult your doctor before trying new herbs or aromatherapy if you are pregnant, on medication or suffer from allergies.
The Top 10 Brainjuicers to Enhance Your Creativity - To learn more about this author, visit Linda Naiman's Website.
Like this article? Share it with your friends
 |
Related Articles |
|
The Top 10 Brainjuicers to Enhance Your Creativity
|
| |
Many of the people I coach are looking for creative ways to enhance their performance. These tips will not only help you be more creative, they will also help you attain a healthier more balanced lifestyle.
|
Creativity is a Powerful Way of Thinking and Being
|
| |
I often hear people say, "I’m not a creative person!" In truth, as humans each of us is inherently creative by virtue of being part of Nature - the essence of creativity itself.
I believe to be creative means to u...
|
Nurturing Creativity at Work
|
| |
Good managers know that creativity is essential for the health and
prosperity of the companies they work for. And therefore, good
managers also know that their single most important job is to
nurture creativit...
|
Tapping into Our Creativity ~ Poetic of the Soul
|
| |
Creativity has been painted as a path to our imagination, an expression of our spiritual nature, and as a business success application tool. In our search and in the depths of creativity comes what we may find we ar...
|
Energy at Work
|
| |
Do you find that you are often overwhelmed or tired? This article gives you an overview of the importance of reading energy so that you can be more empowered.
|
|
|
Linda Naiman
(Visit Linda's Website)
Linda Naiman is founder of
CreativityatWork.com, co-author of
Orchestrating Collaboration at Work, and
an associate business coach at the
University of British Columbia. She is
recognized internationally for pioneering
the use of art as a catalyst for
developing creativity, innovation, and
collaborative leadership in organizations.
Her work has also been profiled in several
books including Artbased Approaches: A
Practical Handbook to Creativity at, and
Wake Me Up When the Data Is Over. She has
also been interviewed in the Vancouver
Sun, the Globe and Mail, Canadian Business
Magazine and CBC Radio.
Linda is a frequent speaker at business
conferences and provides coaching,
training and consulting to a wide range of
clients, from Fortune 500 companies to
entrepreneurs, in North America, Europe,
Asia and Australia. Linda is currently
setting up peer coaching triangles to help
people create a low cost sustainable,
self-directed workplace program that
fosters and improves relationships,
provides space and a place to practice
learning, increases leadership and
coaching skills, and provides time to
think.
|
|
 |
|
|
Linda Naiman's
Complete
List Of
Business-Coach
Articles
|
|
|
If you enjoyed this article, get Linda Naiman's Complete List of Business-Coach Articles For FREE!
|
| |
|
|
|