Training Industry Magazine - January/February 2020 - 11

SRINI PIL LAY, M.D.

SCIENCE OF
LEARNING

THE AGILE BRAIN:
HOW YOU CAN LEARN TO DO LESS
TO ADAPT AT THE SPEED OF CHANGE
When people have to develop "learning
agility," they imagine that they
somehow have to acquire superhuman
multitasking skills or an unusual knack
for adapting without skipping a beat.
Just the thought of that can be
exhausting. Instead, you have to make
adjustments to the way you use your
brain in order to work smarter - not
harder. So, how do you optimize your
brain to learn and adapt at the speed
of change?

Small strategic efficiency changes
can help you become more agile and
develop a supertasking brain.

Developing perspective: A little strategy
time never hurt anyone. Many people
spring out of bed and rush off to work,
getting their to-do lists together as
fast as they can. While this may sound
efficient, it often isn't. When there are
too many things in your brain, you
develop a brain traffic bottleneck.
All of a sudden, everything slows
down. That initial rush leads to
diminishing returns.

Did you know that our minds wander
47% of the time during the day?
We need to learn to mind-wander
strategically. For instance, a five- to
15-minute nap can give you up to
three hours of clarity. Doodling during
a conference call may improve your
memory by up to 29%.

ADJUST THE WAY
YOU USE YOUR BRAIN
IN ORDER TO WORK
SMARTER - NOT
HARDER.
It helps to sit down at the beginning
of the day to see if you can arrange
your tasks efficiently. Can you combine
two meetings into one? Can you turn
an hour-long meeting into a 30-minute
meeting? Can you schedule the more
challenging tasks of the day to a time
when you have the greatest energy?

Conserving brain energy: With the
demands you face to adapt to constant
change, you might think that focus is
the order of the day. However, as I
point out in my book "Tinker Dabble
Doodle Try," you must build unfocus
times into your day to refuel your brain
and gain the energy to adapt.

One way to do this is to practice
positive constructive daydreaming
- scheduling 15 to 20 minutes in
your day when your brain would be
naturally depleted. However, you can't
just sit at your desk. Take a walk, do
some gardening or try knitting. Then,
imagine something positive like going
apple-picking or cozying up to a good
movie. Then, let your mind wander.
This will boost your creativity and
refresh your brain. The brain's default
mode network comes on when you
stop focusing and puts puzzle pieces
together, allowing you to discover new
ways of becoming agile.
Connecting to your psychological center
of gravity (COG): Your psychological
COG is your north star. It is your guiding

light when you feel lost or rushed.
When you are overwhelmed by the
changes you have to make, reset
to your psychological COG. It's like
training your abdominal muscles.
One key way to do this is to reconnect
with your sense of purpose. This is not
some external goal, but the activities
that make you feel you are flourishing.
When you do, you activate your brain's
reward system, and you get the energy
edge you need to hold steady.
Think of a possibility that is not yet a
reality, and commit to believing that you
are sufficient to deliver on promises
that you have not yet delivered on.
This does not require you to be sure or
right every time. It's a choice that you
make to let possibility be your guide.
Ask yourself, "What two things can I
say 'no' to?" Offload things that drain
you - the barely satisfying friendship,
the task that you hate to do, the
compromise you're being asked to
make that you don't actually have
to make. When you do, you gain the
ability to do more satisfying and
motivating things.
When it comes to learning agility and
optimizing your brain, less is more.
Dr.
Srini
Pillay
is
the
CEO
of NeuroBusiness Group. He is also
assistant professor (part-time) at
Harvard Medical School and teaches
in the executive education programs
at Harvard Business School and Duke
CE. Email Srini.

T R A I N I N G I N DUSTR Y MAGAZ INE -AGILE LEARNING 2020 I WWW. T RAININGINDU S T RY . C OM/ MAGAZ I NE

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