What we do in our lives to keep our brains busy and active is important, but it’s much better to do things that we enjoy and which are meaningful. So many people these days are far too busy, rushing around on mobile phones, multitasking as they go, emails, messages, social media, jobs, kids. Others are not busy enough. Some people are lonely, others desperate for space. It’s hard to keep a balance.
Learning is good for us, because everything we think about, all of the information that we take in helps our brains to fire and wire and grow new connections, create more patterns, and the more we do the more we strengthen the connections in our brains. They get stronger and the better preserved over time they will be. It’s cause and effect. It's about engaging brain and being interested in the world around you..
But don't feel under any extra pressure, because if you already have a crazy busy life, then you will be keeping your brain busy anyway. In fact, overload isn’t a particularly good thing as it can paralyse thinking and cause brain freeze. Having too much to do for too long eventually leads to burn out. So if you become stressed out or anxious, that’s a warning sign that something is out of balance - your brain telling you to rethink what’s going on in your life.
But it’s not just about what we do, it’s about how we think, how we choose to adapt to new circumstances, react to adversity. The way we choose to process our environment, the interpretations that we make. We are ultimately the directors of our own fate, it's just that nobody tells us that. It’s so easy to become a victim, feel we dont have control, let our automatic subconscious minds control us.
But whilst we cant control what thoughts come up into our mind, we can choose how to respond to them. Being more aware of of our minds and how they work is key, because they can be our worst enemy but they can also be our best friend too, depending on how we choose to think. What are we if not our mind? Its a balance between letting them grow and explore and create, and keeping them in check. It's fascinating really. We are our very own life long personal development project.