This article is written by Margaret Moore, who is the director Coaching Institute at McLean Hospital (Harvard Medical School branch), the founder and leader Wellcoaches CorporationAs well as the co-author of the book "Organize Your Mind, Organize Your Life».
Here's what she told in an interview to CNN: «During the time while I trained thousands of people for a while, until I talked with other successful coaches, I learned one lesson: if your mind is well organized, you and your lifestyle change. You will become a successful, healthy and happy.
This idea became the basis for the book «Organize Your Mind, Organize Your Life», which we wrote with Paul Hemmernessom, a psychiatrist at Harvard University. We have identified six principles of the organization of the mind and gave a few tips that will help you to work independently of each other.
In this case we are not talking about how to bring all of its business in the list, we are not talking about looking for a new super-service that helps you organize all of your business.
We are talking about the ability of your mind to achieve a higher degree of order when you become calm, wise, positive, learn to think strategically. These skills will be useful to you in absolutely all areas of life, including your health and well-being.
Disorganization of the mind becomes some epidemic. You yourself may have noticed that a lot of people around you are depressed, confused, fussy, they have a huge burden of care, they do not know where to go ...
Hence, all the bad habits, the constant nervous situation and, as a result, feeling unwell.
If your mind is organized, you can easily concentrate on solving the problems and solve them easily. Fortunately, these skills organization has placed in us, we need only learn to use them! "
Let's talk about the rules of the organization themselves crazy.
Rule 1. Tame your emotions
First of all, you must learn to manage their negative emotions, such as anxiety, anger, sadness, anger. These emotions are absolutely not allow you to focus on the problem, they are a destructive effect on the prefrontal cortex, which is just involved with logical thinking.
Explore what measures you personally help to deal with the negative emotions. It may be a good sleep and exercise, and meditation. Or maybe, in moments of rage or deep sadness should just remember that these emotions prevent you make the right decisions and move on to the target.
Rule 2. Focus on one task
Once you learn how to manage negative emotions, learn to focus on only one task. Our brain is not able to solve several problems at once. Highlight the priority goal and give her all the attention. Turn off your phone, close the instant messenger and email, and put Timer 20-30 minutes to dedicate this time only one problem.
Rule 3. Be able to apply the brakes
Your brain is focused should be able to stop as abruptly as the car when the traffic light turns red.
Even when you are focused, your brain continues to scan your internal and external environment. Such distractions are inevitable, if you are, of course, not a robot. But distracted to properly: Stop, take a deep breath and think about what you specifically distracted and worthy of your attention whether it is right now. Maybe you feel that you need to eat or take a break.
But distracted to properly: Stop, take a deep breath and think about what you specifically distracted and worthy of your attention whether it is right now.
If what you are distracted, does not require your immediate attention, then return to his task again focus on it and work up until you finish the performance or feel that need respite.
Rule 4. Access your working memory
The working memory contains small pieces of information necessary for the short-term thinking activity (Wikipedia). Appeal to the working memory turns in it different elements and helps to produce fresh ideas, it helps to gain insight into the problem and offers new ways and strategies to solve problems. Scientists came to the conclusion that from the working memory size depends on the level of development rolling intelligence, Which includes the ability to learn, inductive and deductive reasoning, abstract thinking, recognize connections and patterns.
The same exercises that help you take control of negative emotions, help you to access your working memory. Sleep enough time, learn the techniques of meditation.
Rule 5. Learn to switch attention
When you need to switch to a new job, give it all your attention. Forget about the job that you were doing before, now all your focus should be directed at solving new problems.
Such a change of activity is good for our brain is also a fact that makes the mind more flexible and agile, while this technique works often give rise to interesting and original ideas.
Flexible and healthy mind we need nothing less than a flexible and healthy body.
Rule 6. Connect all together
Let us sum up. You must learn to control their negative emotions and focus their attention on one task. You need to know how to be distracted from the task. You must learn to completely switch from one task to another and apply to their working memory, to generate new ideas and solutions.
Having learned all this, you not only make your mind more flexible, you can in a different way to look at life, you will be able to change their habits. You get rid of the constant nervousness and haste, and will calmly and intently to solve incoming problems.
You will be more productive, and therefore more able to devote more time to their empowerment. You will feel better and healthier, as will leave a constant feeling of anxiety, a sense of haste. Using his organized mind, you can set yourself any goals, and most importantly, to achieve them.