Welcome to part 2 of the prefrontal cortex GM series of posts!
Last week in part 1, I went over what the executive functions are specifically (decision-making, focus skills, “big thinking” abilities, planning, and emotional management – to name a few).
This week, I’ve looked into some basic tips on how to strengthen your prefrontal cortex (and consequently improve your executive functions) and I’m sharing with you some of my favorites that I found…
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Filter the information you entertain. Information overload negatively affects your brain’s frontal lobe capacity to think clearly and make strong decisions. This is the best argument I’ve heard for “not sweating the small stuff.” Who wants to be focused on the trivial when it detracts from the relevant?
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Think from your “wise mind”. This is a technique I learned a while back that I absolutely love. If you have difficulty regulating your impulses or emotions, pause for a beat and ask yourself what the wiser version of yourself would do. By using your critical thinking skills, you switch right out of your emotion mind and into a more rational state.
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Create a positive future story. Optimism promotes rising levels of dopamine, a neurotransmitter that helps control the brain’s reward and pleasure centers.
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Focus on learning new and engaging activities to fire off neurons and develop a stronger PFC.
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Get good sleep. I feel like this tip might be on every health/body/mind tip list that’s ever existed, and that’s probably for a reason. When it comes to prefrontal cortex performance, studies (by Kate McGonigal, PhD, author of The Willpower Instinct) show that when sleep-deprived people start getting better sleep, their brain scans no longer show signs of PFC impairment.
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Meditate. Meditation improves not only your willpower but also your focus, attention, stress management, and self-awareness.
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Manage your willpower. {I love this technique – I think this one might be the most helpful and it also is the one I’d like to work on the most.} If you understand that your willpower is in limited supply and can ebb and flow considering various conditions (time of day, amount of sleep, stressful environments, etc), you can properly prepare yourself for those times when you’re mentally exhausted and have low self-control. You can’t necessarily control when your willpower is in low supply, so don’t beat yourself up about it. Instead, control your environment and ensure that you’re setting yourself up for willpower success.
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Consume vitamin-rich foods and exercise. Nutrient-packed foods and exercise that is fun for you will boost your mood, improve the efficiency of cognitive function, and help persist against emotional resistance.
Hope these helped.
Looking forward to your thoughts,
JM
LINKS:
https://www.fastcompany.com/
http://advancedhabits.com/how-
Hi
are you ever going to explain why you don’t want fans who missed your FB live to see your first released film? You said awhile back you couldn’t wait for us to see it now you won’t let us without any explanation & I’m angry & disappointed in you in more than one way.
She will have her reasons, do not despair.
Hey. What happens to her?
How about you give her some space? The world is not all rainbows and sunshine. If she feels like taking a hiatus at any given time, then that is what she feels is best. Go be “mad”, you aren’t paying her. Better yet maybe you should take one too, hell it’d probably be to your benefit.
I support JM through good times and tough times, we all know she has a good head on her shoulders. Best wishes homegirl and chin up.
Wow I just stumbled onto this at 3 AM not being able to sleep and thinking about life. New favorite website. For sure.
Jennette i been Reading many comments there are Some Nice ones with iT im sure u Will agree with me and jenn im happy That u starten these blogs because theres so much i want to know About u maybewe can learn much About u alot love from the netherlands
After reading all of these blogs, I get the impression that your real passion is in human behavior. Are you taking any psychology courses? Maybe that should be your next project, a show very much like the old Bob Newhart show, only updated.
That would be Nice if her next project would be About these blogs
When you eat pancakes or waffles or French toast your cortex craves one more than the other but their made of the same batter. Funny whipped cream and strawberries make the 3 equally desired. Which means I excell at mental health.
Jennette first i want to say That i love these blogs and i admirer what u write because iT must be hard to write ur feelings and emotions away from u and That also brings alot brain functions with iT im proud of you jenn and u may know That i have very much respect for u young lady keep on writing a big hug for you love u <3
hi Jennette thanks for share this. you know maybe can talk about
How to control bad emotions like anger, jealousy or even addictive habits,
Or forgot your pictures in instagram are very nice especially one of them.
Jorge ur Nice to her im sure That she Will reply to u because Jennette loves these comments
Hi Jennette, thanks for the tips. Will try for sure.
Hi Jennette. How are you? I hope you are well !! =) 1) I always have the relevant thing in mind. Really all that is trivial I think when there are small connections in the events of the day. 2) I love “wise mind” because it’s true. We have to control our impulses and think about what a real good person would do. 3) I see myself being famous and having many fans … I’m serious!! 4) I go well with my chess and my sudokus of difficult level, haha. 5) I sleep like a baby lately. It’s something fantastic… Read more »
this comment is nice patricia ur a true fan this is what i like etleast someone whos a very nice person it seems that u and i are the only one who are nice to her well etleast some of us are nice
It’s interesting how some of the tips you mention can seem so obvious or logical, yet they can be so easy to forget. Getting good sleep? Can’t say enough about that, which hearkens back to a previous post of yours. It’s been said that “attitude is everything”, and while that may be an oversimplification, optimism can be super helpful in keeping you motivated. Being positive isn’t thinking everything is fine in fairy-tale land, but rather looking for the good in things and as you say, not sweating the small stuff. Information overload, I think we’ll discover more about that as… Read more »
These tips are really interesting and important. I have to put them into practice because of my constant stress provoked by my routine. Thank you very much, Jennette. Love from Brazil <3
Aw this comment is awesome joao im sure she Will reply to u aswell many of u Guys are so Nice to Jennette i love That so much i adore Jennette shes so sweet she has sucha sweet personality we can learn alot About hervwith these blogs
Offer and receive physical contact. Give and take hugs to literally soothe the brain with calming inhibitory peptides.
I will put in action the 8 tips, Next week I comment my results.
Sorry, I could not put in action the 8 tips I had health problems.
Are u Guys forgetting That Jennette is an human being and That she also has emotions and feelings shes not a robot Guys shes a human being and Every human being has emotions and feelings and she wants to get rid of That emotions and feelings and if its this way by writing iT away from her then let her do iT her way and dont interfear with her life let her do her things and leave her alone Guys Jennette is a human being and i love what shes doing and i let her do what she wants i… Read more »
Yes all; I also now believe that this has nothing to do with her, and am thinking it just may be another lousy psy-op. Too bad, cause her appeal to my intellect caused me to call head over heels in love with her. Not the last op. they’ll run I’m sure.
Ok, I want her to be here, and I can’t delete the old comment. Just having withdrawals, that’s all…
These are all great tips, I’ve dealt with too much stress lately. I feel your favorites you have here can help me deal with that stress and manage my self better to develop a better and positive well being. I like #2 because I feel that being wise about something is much more intelligent then constantly being negative, which I had struggled with in the past. With this, I can be in a more rational state. #7 about will-power is another I like because relation to stress which I mentioned, I get mentally tired and I sometimes feel myself with… Read more »
You’ve given me such inspiration and i truly thank you for that
Those are good tips Jennette and it is important to strengthen the brain after it is a muscle/organ we use the most
This is a Nice comment etleast ur Nice to her but Some people are not so Nice to her and im sure she Will agree with me
Dude I’m not trying to be mean to her. I figured she wasn’t even going to look at this blog again or at least not for a few months. So I figured that Canvas Media was looking at it and I was angry at what they make Jenn do and how dumb their ideas to make her more connected with us are like 20 shout outs to fans can make their day but just reading 20 names cuz you’re required to cuz of a company kinda takes out the feeling behind everything. Like why can’t Jenn just want to reply… Read more »
My first thought was as modern societies move further away from a sense of personal responsibility it seems less likely for people to accept the underlying premise. Many believe the world must change to suit their impulses. I believe your thinking requires a person to be on the path of an ideal person according to the serenity prayer; serenity to accept the things one can’t change, courage to change the things one can, and the wisdom to know the difference. If a person can manage to accept it is their responsibility to control their impulses rather than blame others for… Read more »
It is like a business plan for your brain.