7 reasons why you don't have fresh ideas at all

1. You don't move much

If you work remotely and rest on the couch in the evening, you may notice a drop in productivity. When a person moves a little, the brain receives less oxygen. Hence fatigue, decreased performance, drowsiness. Sports activities will help: during them oxygen is supplied to the brain - due to this, it works betterPromoting brain health through exercise and diet. Plus, regular exercise increasesExercise training increases size of hippocampus and improves memory The hippocampus is the part of the brain responsible for attention and long-term memory. By the way, in order to practice, it is not at all necessary to leave the house, it is enough just to ventilate the room well before and after training.

What to do

Incorporate exercise into your daily schedule. Workouts should not necessarily be long and very intense: 10-15 minutes in the morning or evening is enough to keep your muscles and brain in good shape. You can find suitable exercise options on YouTube or in fitness apps, which include yoga, dancing, and strength training that you can do at home.

2. You think and analyze too much

Think about how often you don't do something because you worry about the opinions of others. You are comparing yourself to others and do not tackle the task just because you are afraid in advance to fail. Or you go over all the old failures and mistakes in your head. Such thoughts only get in the way, and you need to get rid of them.

What to do

There are several ways to help you get your thoughts in order and relax.

• Meditation. She has no magical and magical properties, it's just a training of attention, which is not difficult to perform. Sit up straight and focus on your breathing: inhale and exhale slowly. Think only of the movement of air, or repeat to yourself an inspiring phrase such as “I can do anything,” “I deserve success,” or something similar. If you get lost and start thinking about something else, stop and refocus on breathing.
• Mindfulness practice. Notice your obsessive thoughts and transform them into tasks. For example, if you are thinking, "How could I have made such a trivial mistake?", Change that phrase into "What needs to be done to avoid making this mistake again?" Find the answer and solve the problem gradually.
• Abstraction. If you noticed that obsessive thoughts interfere with your work, take a break for 2-3 minutes. During this time, solve a few puzzles, assemble a puzzle, or arrange books on the shelf in alphabetical order - tackle the task that requires maximum concentration.
• Stop phrases. Come up with expressions that will help fight negative attitudes. For example, "I try" or "I can do anything." Remember them when you start analyzing your failures again.
• A diary. Throw out all the worries on paper - this will allow you to forget about them at least for a while.

3. You are eating wrong

If you are often unable to concentrate, constantly feel tired or sad, have begun to memorize information less well, and have difficulty controlling emotions, you may be eatingEffects of normal meals rich in carbohydrates or proteins on plasma tryptophan and tyrosine ratios too much sweet food.

What to do

Cutting out sugar isn't necessary, but candy and biscuits shouldn't replace a full meal. And eating a whole box of sweets at a time is also not worth it. Include in your diet plenty of vegetables and fresh fruits, and also do not forget about the ratio of KBZHU. You can calculate it for your age, body size and nutritional goals in special applications and online calculators. The required calorie content can also be determined manually using the Mifflin-Geor formula.

• For men: 5 + (10 × weight [kg]) + (6.25 × height [cm]) - (5 × age [years]).
• For women: (10 × weight [kg]) + (6.25 × height [cm]) - (5 × age [years]) - 161.

4. You lack inspiration

You don't know where to get ideas from, everything seems too mundane and uninteresting. Because of this, you do your work and daily activities automatically, leaving no room for improvisation and creativity.

What to do

You can find inspiration by watching cool videos and lectures, such as TED, or by doing some simple exercises:

• Freewriting. Take a clean sheet. At the top, write a question that worries you, or a topic you want to speculate on. Now, for 5-15 minutes, just write whatever comes into your head. The main thing at this time is to observe six rules: not to exert extra efforts; write quickly and continuously; write the way you think; do not go beyond the time frame; develop thought; change the focus of attention. After you finish writing, distract yourself with another task for seven minutes. Then re-read and look for interesting thoughts in the text.
• Neurographics. You will need paper here too. But now it is not necessary to write on it, but to draw an abstract picture. Take a pen, pencil, or felt-tip pen and move across the sheet in any direction without thinking or analyzing. What will turn out in the end - a beautiful picture or just kalyaks, small ones, is not so important. Neurographics is a paper meditation that helps you calm down, collect your thoughts and find inspiration.
• Look for new things in common items. Take a few things that are not related to each other and put together some kind of composition. Allocate a maximum of 10 minutes for this. So you look at everyday objects from the other side.

5. Your desktop is a mess

If you are sitting at the table right now, look around. A pile of papers, a mug of cold coffee, books, a thousand pens, a mountain of souvenirs - if you saw any of this, it's time to clean up. Clutter negatively affects attention, interferes with work and coming up with new ideas.

What to do

Clean your desk and organize the space to help you work, not the other way around. For this:

• If you spend a lot of time at the computer, move the monitor 43–45 cm away from you.
• Place frequently used items, such as a pen or smartphone, next to your dominant hand, so you don't have to reach for them for a long time.
• Put unnecessary stationery in the closet, leave only what you really use. You definitely don't need 10 pens.
• Don't overdo it with your personal items. Souvenirs, photographs, a mug, postcards - all of this should be in moderation, a maximum of three items on the table.
• Leave empty space for paperwork. If you have to sign or calculate something, you will not need to waste time clearing up the space.

Try not to eat at your desk: not only can you dirty or dirty something important, you also mix work with rest.

6. You are constantly busy with something.

If you are not working, then sit on social networks, read books, watch videos, TV shows or films. It may seem like relaxation to you, but your brain thinks differently. He is constantly busy: he receives and processes a huge flow of information, time and effort to come up with something of his own, fresh and interesting simply does not remain.

What to do

Arrange a digital detox on the weekend: put all devices aside, put your smartphone in airplane mode, or turn it off altogether so that notifications do not distract you. This will forceHow Being Bored Out of Your Mind Makes You More Creative the brain will "get bored" and it will start to entertain itself by inventing something. At this time, you can sort things out in the closet, clean the apartment, prepare food for the week ahead.

If you are not enough for such feats, try the "do nothing" method. This is just a 5-7 minute practice, similar to meditation. Their difference is that during "doing nothing" you can remember events from the past, but this must be done fleetingly and without analysis. Set a timer, sit comfortably, breathe slowly and calmly, flip through pleasant memories in your head.

7. You are lacking in vitamins and minerals

If you are not following a balanced diet, then you may not be getting enough of the beneficial elements. Hence, not only the lack of productivity and creativity, but also weakness, deterioration in the quality of hair and skin, apathy and other consequences.

What to do

If you're feeling sluggish and can't get yourself to work, you may be missing one of the elements that affect productivity:

• Omega-3. Fatty acids improve metabolismA diet rich in long chain omega-3 fatty acids modulates satiety in overweight and obese volunteers during weight loss, memoryImproved Working Memory but No Effect on Striatal Vesicular Monoamine Transporter Type 2 after Omega-3 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acid Supplementation and bone strengthPolyunsaturated fatty acids and their relation with bone and muscle health in adults. Contained in fatty fish, flaxseed oil, legumes, green vegetables.
• IN 3. Maintains the quality of visionFolic Acid, Vitamin B6, and Vitamin B12 in Combination and Age-related Macular Degeneration in a Randomized Trial of Women, prevents memory lossPlasma homocysteine ​​as a risk factor for dementia and Alzheimer's disease. Found in fish, meat and legumes.
• AT 12. ImprovesVitamin B-12 concentration, memory performance, and hippocampal structure in patients with mild cognitive impairment memory, doesVitamin and mineral status: effects on physical performance you more energetic, helps to synthesize serotonin, due to this improves mood and even helps to fightVitamin B12 Supplementation in Treating Major Depressive Disorder with symptoms of depression. B12 is found in meat, seafood and dairy products.
• Magnesium. ParticipatesMagnesium in man: implications for health and disease in more than 600 processes in the body, including helping to regulate the nervous system. Magnesium is found in bananas, avocados, almonds, cashews, brown rice, soy products, and milk.