What causes our minds to wander? Is it helping us or hurting us? Researchers have found that the answer is more complicated than you might think. But, as the fields of psychology develop and shift, so too does neuroscience. We can now better than ever understand what parts of the brain are doing while we perform tasks or when we are prompted to think about specific topics. But what does this teach us?
For one thing, we are beginning to understand that mind-wandering may serve several functions, even when it seems counterintuitive, like when we are distracted at work. While nothing is conclusive with this concept, it reveals that our thoughts and minds are doing a lot of work throughout the day, depending on how we are stimulating the brain. When a task is harder, we often focus more on it and are less likely to wander. When a task is easier, we do more wandering.
From ELI’s perspective, this is very valuable as we reflect on the importance of ideating and tinkering. As we embrace trial-and-error problem-solving, we need to give ourselves space for the mind to wander.
Thinking about the value of mind-wandering might lead you to reflect on times you’ve been guilty of procrastination. Everyone does it, but why? And perhaps more importantly, how can we combat it?
In this Harvard Business Review article from 2016, we see a simple yet effective outline of how to get over procrastination. From simple tips like committing publicly to achieving a goal to visualizing how you will feel once a task is completed, the author gives us ways to reframe a future task as something worth working on.
From there, she also highlights ways to make future tasks feel more achievable. Namely, tricking yourself into thinking the task will not take too much effort or time by breaking it into smaller steps. Tying the first step to a reward can be a good motivator, too. Put simply; our brains want to default to quick, achievable tasks that are low effort. So, we have to convince ourselves that important, larger projects are worth starting. As the author says, “be kind to yourself. Recognize that your brain needs help if it’s going to be less short-sighted.”
When we reflect on the power our unconscious minds have over us, it’s important to remember that brains want to keep us safe, secure, and happy, but they do not always think long-term. That is where we have a lot of power to focus on the future and set ourselves up for success.
Those who follow ELI and other mindset leaders have heard about the power of resilience many times, but it is another thing to hear from someone who has struggled against tough odds about how they do it. In this podcast interview, Dan Oosterhous of the Airforce Academy shares his story of recovery from two strokes that impacted his career as a pilot and as a tennis coach for the Academy.
In his story, we hear that the whole time during the initial recovery, he was focused on learning about the situation and learning more about what was happening with his body. What he and the podcast host noticed is that not only is this problem-solving attitude useful in achieving recovery goals, but it also engages their caregivers more, too.
So while we reflect on the power of the mind, we should also remember that we have more autonomy than we realize to change the way we think. Even in the face of a difficult recovery, we can achieve more than any would hope to.
To close out this month’s Top of Mind Newsletter, let’s apply some of what we’ve learned about our individual minds to collectives. In any established organization, workers will have seen any number of “change initiatives,” from reducing waste in a corporate setting, improving customer feedback, or developing new programs to improve employee morale. And we often hear about how these initiatives do not work or how they could have been done better.
In a recent episode of organizational psychologist Adam Grant’s podcast WorkLife, we hear about ways in which you can enact real change in the workplace. Spoilers, many of his guest’s suggestions align with changing how we think for ourselves.
Guest Dan Heath, the author of Switch, offers three simple steps to create lasting change. Step one is to help people understand why a change is needed. As he states it, “paint a vivid picture.” This is critical, as it helps everyone embrace the goal but also helps them understand that it’s worth working on (does this remind you of how to beat procrastination yet?).
Step two focuses on appealing to people’s existing values rather than trying to change them. This is not only valuable in creating more team unity but also helps people feel more psychologically safe.
And lastly, step three is all about shrinking the change. Give people the opportunity for small wins. This creates buy-in and offers teams and organizations a better chance to embrace change effectively. Just like taking a daunting task and breaking it down into simpler goals, treating change in this way can have a major impact on an organization.
