4 Ways To Rewire Your Brain According To Science

Leadership

Dec 16

You might have come across the term "rewire your brain" quite a lot in recent times. Trust me, it's not just a fancy word used by people to sound smart. It is actually a crucial phenomenon that happens all the time naturally. You see, the human brain is always changing. The more experiences it gets and the more sensory information it receives, the more it reorganizes itself in response. This is called neuroplasticity.

The thing is, most of the time, you may not even know how your brain is being reorganized. If you don't pay attention, it might get wired in such a way that it adversely impacts all areas of your life. After all, your brain literally influences all your actions. And your actions shape your life. Fortunately, you can take conscious control of this process. There are many ways you can rewire your brain the way you want.

1 | Practice Gratitude

The general way you look at life is a major consequence of the way your brain is wired. So, it only makes sense to reverse engineer this process. Change your attitude about things, people, and situations in your life, and your brain will get reorganized accordingly. One of the best ways to do this is by practicing gratitude. There is a reason why more and more people are adopting this process.

According to Alex Korb, a neuroscientist at UCLA, gratitude affects you on a biological level. He states that the practice of being consciously grateful increases the level of dopamine in your brain. If you didn't already know, dopamine is the "feel-good hormone" and is closely linked to habit formation. It allows the brain to perceive rewards from a given activity and makes it want to do it again to reap those rewards. So, if you are grateful for things that lead to happiness, your brain will want to do them over and over again.

2 | Play Video Games

This will probably be a favorite for many. Finally, you would have an excuse to dust off your gaming console or PC and just go to town with your favorite games. For the longest time, there has been a huge debate regarding the benefits and risks of playing video games. While some of the risks are definitely understandable, the potential benefits are too great to ignore. Mountains of research have shown that gaming can have plenty of positive impacts on the human mind.

Research studies like this have shown that moderated amounts of gaming can improve your memory, reflexes, motor coordination, visuospatial skills, reasoning, decision-making, problem-solving skills, and a lot more. It seems like games have a significant impact on the neuroplasticity of the brain. Also, thanks to innovation, there are different types of games that can improve different types of skills. For instance, puzzle games can improve problem-solving skills, while 3-D games can improve scene recognition and memory. So, I think it would be pretty safe to say that gaming is a viable way to rewire your brain for the better.

3 | Learn A New Language

You might have already heard that learning a new language can make you smarter. This speculation had been going on for a long time until science finally proved it. In a 2012 study, it was found that learning a second language can increase the density of gray matter in your brain. Gray matter is the part of your brain that is responsible for language, memory, attention, emotions, and motor skills. Naturally, a denser gray matter leads to an improvement in all these areas.

Another study in 2017 found that learning a new language as an adult can also increase the density of the white matter in your brain. This white matter is crucial as it facilitates communication between the different regions of the brain. This, too, can lead to a whole host of benefits like improvement in creative thinking, problem-solving, reading comprehension, etc. Thankfully, you don't have to do anything special to learn a new language. There are many free and paid resources that you can make use of from the comfort of your home.

4 | Try Composing Music

Now, I know what you might think here. "I don't even know how to play an instrument, let alone compose music!" That's a fair point. However, you can see this from another perspective. You don't need to make music for sale or to impress someone else. You just need to do it for your own self and to rewire your brain. It doesn't matter if the music you compose is not catchy. Your brain will still receive the benefits.

A study from 2015 shows that music has tremendous implications for neuroplasticity. That is why musicians are often said to have better memory, motor coordination, and audio and visual perception. They also usually have greater focus and attention. You can reap these benefits too if you learn to play any instrument and then try to compose music.

To Wrap Up

The brain naturally organizes itself based on new sensory information and experiences of life. This process is called neuroplasticity, and it is happening all the time. Negative experiences or attitudes can lead to the wiring of your brain that can influence your behavior and actions negatively. Therefore, it is critical to take conscious control of this process and adopt ways to rewire your brain positively. This will make sure that your actions lead to success and happiness.

Follow me on LinkedIn and Instagram to stay up-to-date with other life-hacks that I only share on those platforms. While you’re at it, check out my Amazon bestseller Spark Your Inner Genius!