EXPLOITING THE BRAIN

Alena Holligan@sketchings

sketchings.com

Wife and Mother of 3 young childrenPHP Teacher at Treehouse PHP Users Group Leader Women Who Code Leader

for Fun and Profit

YOUR MOST IMPORTANT TOOL

Perception

Physical

Learning

Memory

EVERYONE WITH A BRAIN STAND UP

RUN IN PLACE

“AWAKE AND ALERT”

PUNCHES

“LISTEN, PAY ATTENTION,

FOLLOW THROUGH”

READ ALOUD

enthusiastic

motivational

fascinating

enjoyable

fun

humorous

useful

beneficial

simple

profitable

valuable

easy

REARRANGE SENTENCE

talk this beneficial is fascinating

PRIMING

ELDERLY PRIMING

Words: Old, Gray, Florida

Significantly longer to walk to the elevator

Done on psychology students

Did the priming influence you? NO

Why? Make things up

We don’t say “I don’t know”instagram.com/ginalee/

The Brain Makes Things Up

WE DON’T EVEN REALIZE IT!

I’m always right. I remember things wrong.

How do we use this to our advantage?

Two TruthsEveryone is the same Everyone is different

PHYSICALPresence, Sleep, Food & Exercise

Power PosesAmy J.C. Cuddy

SLEEP

-Leo J. Burke

"People who say they sleep like a baby usually don't have

one."

Question:

How much sleep do you get?

SLEEP EXPERIMENT

5 days mimicked Alzheimer's

hallucinations and paranoia

30% loss in cognitive ability after 1 night

Physical Affects: blood pressure, immune system, body temp

Factor to obesity trouble metabolizing glucose feel hungry get cravings longer to feel full

DIDN’T FEEL IMPAIRED

Some people need lessinsomniac gene

Probably NOT You!

ANALYZE

How much do you need, sleepcycle.com

Wake up at the same time everyday, even weekends - go to bed when you’re tired

Go to bed at the same time everyday - wake up without an alarm

Write down how you feel, multiple times - both physically and emotionally

morning lark (1/10)

night owl (2/10)

play to your strengths

When are you at your best

SLEEP HACKS

90 minute cycles

Create a routine

Turn off electronics or f.lux

Stop caffeine

Cool and Dark

Room/Bed is Sacred

SOUND

SMELL

Quick Tip

NAPS IMPROVE PERFORMANCE26 min nap = 34% improvement ~ army

EVERYONE WITH A BRAIN STAND UP

Exercise

WHY EXERCISE

improves blood flows

clears waste (in your brain)

improves performance

actually makes brain bigger

Walking Desks

Walking Meetings

Boeing

Mayo Clinic

Start your day with Yoga

Quick TipTime Out App

Exercise for 75 minutes to maximize mortality reduction per minute 20%

Food

-Bill Phillips

"Food is the most widely abused anti-anxiety drug in

America, and exercise is the most potent yet

underutilized antidepressant."

FOOD AS FUEL

Brain adores glucose

2% of mass

20% of energy

Your brain needs fat

Balance: carbs, proteins and fats

Supplements

Caffeine and Alcohol are drugs, use carefully

Quick TipChange the way you think about food.

Find a good supplement

Learning

EVERYONE WITH A BRAIN STAND UP

KNOWLEDGE

Learned

Integrated with existing knowledge

Remembered over time

Deployed as Behavior

LEARNED

Use multiple modalities

Attention needs engagement

Elaborate, Meaningful, Context

Stories and Examples

INTEGRATED WITH EXISTING KNOWLEDGE

Make it yours - do something with it

Teach

REMEMBERED OVER TIME

Forgetting stuff is a feature not a bug

Take frequent breaks

Follow up

Spaced Repetition - Increased knowledge and retention - Timing is key - Information decay - computers can help - The Mnemosyne Project

DEPLOYED AS BEHAVIOR

Have the right attitude

Make it a habit - habitica.com

QUICK TIPS

Make up crazy story

Smells and Sounds

Managing Information

new languages

new technologies

new approaches

books

articles

blogs

podcasts

twitter

conferences

Bombarded with

Information overload

Continuous Partial Attention

We can’t multi-taskCell phones prove this

EMAIL IS LIKE GAMBLINGvariable reinforcement

ATTENTION IS PRECIOUS

Be Selective

Information Diet

Selective Ignorance

Pick something you care about

Skim the rest

Use your friends

Prune Aggressively - if you’re not reading it delete it

Turn off InterruptionsTV

Email Facebook Cell Phone

PRODUCTIVITY

Inbox Zero (declare bankruptcy)

Getting Things Done (GTD)

Pomodoro Technique (Agile)

Sounds (focusatwill.com)

Location, Location, Location

Quick Tip

External BrainCapture ideas to generate more ideas.

We Forget. No, you wont remember.

Computers Don’t

Paper Doesn’t Either

Wiki is a great tool for teams

Final Review

EVERYONE WITH A BRAIN STAND UP

Mindfulness

Try new things

Write it down

Quality over Quantity

Balance

Breathe

Resources

BOOKS

Predictably Irrational

A Whole New Mind

Getting Things Done

Your Brain: The Missing Manual

Pragmatic Thinking and Learning

Brain Rules

Mind Hacks

Sway

Nudge

Drive

WEBSITES

brainrules.net

lifehacker.com

43folders.com/izero

MindHacks.com

FocusAtWill.com

ted.com

Personal Brain Scan

emotiv.com

OpenBCI.com

THERE’S AN APP FOR THAT

sleepcycle.com

f.lux

dejal.com/timeout/

habitica.com

coach.me

-Ralph Keeney, Duke University

America’s top killer isn’t cancer or heart disease, nor is it

smoking or obesity. It’s our inability to make smart

choices and overcome our own self-destructive behaviors.

Choose One Small Step Today

Alena Holligan@sketchings

sketchings.com

Wife and Mother of 3 young children PHP Teacher at Treehouse PHP Users Group Leader Women Who Code Leader

https://joind.in/18814