"Optimizing your brain function is the key to feeling more satisfied, becoming more engaged in life, reaching your potential, and realizing your dreams " write Jeff Brown, a cognitive-behavioral psychologist at Harvard Medical School, and Mark Fenske, a neuroscientist and associate professor in psychology at the University of Guelph. The average brain has more than one hundred billion brain cells doing their thing to assist you in thinking, moving, and experiencing the world around you.
Brown and Fensek begin with a quick brain tour before moving on to the history of modern neuroscience and its relevance to developing a winner's brain. They then present eight essential factors in this process: self-awareness, motivation, focus, emotional balance, memory, resilience, adaptability, and brain care. Throughout the paperback, the authors share dozens of "Brainstorms," exercises designed to boost the brain's fullest potential.
Brown and Fenske also deliver interviews with people they think have developed a winner's brain including actress Laura Linney, musician B.B. King, gymnast Kerri Strug, and artist Andrew Wyeth. Some of the most fascinating and impressive material in this book comes in small pieces: material on mirror neurons and their role in empathy, the skills needed to perfect your reading of the body language of others, the importance of focus and the problem of distractions, the art of reframing a highly emotional event, tips in constructing a proactive brain, and making memories durable.
In the closing chapter on brain care, Brown and Fenske suggest 30 minutes of moderate physical activity three times a week, enjoying a hobby, eating fruits and vegetables, and aiming for seven to eight hours of uninterrupted sleep each night. All of these practices will contribute to what musician B.B. King calls living in the flow: "When I'm doing improve, I seem to live what I'm doing in the moment. It's like playing a puzzle and every piece must fit. When you find those missing pieces, it feels good, like a river flowing."
