Brain Network Theory: Using Neuroscience to Stay Productive During Times of Change and Chaos

This is episode #48. Welcome to the Neuroscience Meets Social and Emotional Learning podcast, my name is Andrea Samadi, I’m a former educator whose been fascinated with understanding the science behind high performance strategies in schools, sports and the workplace for the past 20 years.  I’ve always loved this quote, and it just seems relevant today. “In a time of drastic change, (like our world today) it is the learners who inherit the future. The learned (those who think they know it all) usually find themselves beautifully equipped to live in a world that no longer exists.” (Eric Hoffer, Philosopher) Today’s episode will focus on some strategies to help you to remain productive at work, whether you are working from home, or home schooling your children, AND working, let’s take a look at some evidence-based strategies with the application of the most current, fascinating brain research to help you to stay focused, so when all of this chaos that’s happening in our world today comes to an end, (because it will) you will emerge as stronger, more efficient and knowledgeable, with perhaps a different outlook of some new and improved ways of living your life. I just learned some new ways of thinking from Jim Bunch, who is known as “The Ultimate Life Entrepreneur” –he spent years working side-by-side with Tony Robbins. Jim’s mission is to inspire happiness, health, and wealth worldwide. He is the founder of The Ultimate Game of Life app[i] that I have been using for the past 504 days. I’m counting only because my plan was to use the app for 30 days to recover from a surgery and get my workouts back on track—and 504 days later, I realized there was much more to the app than meets the eye. This week, Jim was talking about some new ways of thinking and reminded us that during these strange times, you’ll notice some things that you have been doing that give you energy and make you stronger.[ii] Think about what they are and amplify those activities. Do more of what gives you energy, and less of what is draining.  You’ll notice some things that are becoming obsolete in your life. Notice them and take note of what is replacing them. Are these new ways better than the old way? Be aware of your new way of living and see what you can learn from this time to improve life when it returns to its new normal. What will you keep doing more of, and what will you think about changing or deleting? What new strategies and knowledge can you gain? This can be a powerful time of renewal. Brain Network Theory: The New Brain Science of Reducing Stress Before we dive deep into this week’s episode, let’s take a closer look at the new brain science of overcoming stress and avoiding work burnout called Brain Network Theory—that we should all be aware of to increase positivity, reduce stress and anxiety and increase our work productivity and results.  Remember, just like Theory of Mind from EPISODE 46[iii], this is also a theory. Brain Network Theory is now being talked about all over the place, so if you follow the most current neuroscience research, I’m sure you will have heard about it. There are many books being written on this NEW Brain Network Theory (I’ve mentioned Dr. Srini Pillay and his book about the power of the unfocused mind in past episodes). I’ve been working closely with Mark Waldman (from EPISODE 30)[iv] this past week and know that applying Brain Network Theory to our life at this point in time can be powerful. With any theory, just keep an open mind, listen to the ideas, and see how they can fit into your life.   So what is Brain Network Theory? If you were to go to www.pubmed.gov  and search for the most recent studies on the brain, instead of looking at different parts of the brain, like we used to do, we now know and study different networks in the brain to gain understanding, and we can measure and see the activity in each of these brain networks. Some people use fMRI scans, others use SPECT image scans, but I am sure you