Healthy Brain Performance Part 1 — Exploring the brain and our higher level competencies
This article is the first in a series exploring our brain’s performance and how it influences our behaviour and outcomes.
The other articles in this series:
During this exploration, we will look at how we can improve the management of our brain’s functions to develop effective behaviour that enables the achievement of more of what matters most.
Image 1 shows the “Achieve Outcomes and Performance model”. This model helps you to understand how meeting our needs impacts our brain’s performance and therefore our thinking, behaviour and outcomes.
Executive functioning and using top skills Your brain has a set of cognitive abilities that are known as executive functions. They include Sequencing and Prioritising; Focused Attention; Working-memory; Problem Solving; Decision Making; Self-regulation; Planning and Flexibility (see Image 2 below).
Our executive functions are required to help us to learn and perform higher-level competencies and skills such as Innovation; Critical thinking and Analysis; Technology Use; Active Learning; Emotional Intelligence; Leadership & Influence and Complex problem-solving.
These higher-level skills are required to achieve business objectives and performance in the modern and future world of work. They are also required to help you to achieve your personal goals and objectives.
You can learn more about the top skills of the modern and future world of work here.
We require these higher-level skills when interacting with others at work and at home. For example, to be able to give feedback we need to use the executive functions of analytical thinking, focus, language and emotional regulation. To be present or to listen we require focus and self-control
Essentially these are competencies that we all need to use when interacting with others at work and at home.
For example, to be able to give feedback (higher level competency) we need to use our foundational capabilities of analytical thinking, focus, language and emotional regulation. To be present or to listen we require focus and self-control.
Enabling behaviours and environment
To optimise our brain’s executive functions, there are simple practices (which we call enabling behaviours) that you can use to increase your capacity to use your executive functions and therefore your ability to perform higher-level skills.
There are also certain psychological and social needs that need to be met, which are influenced by our surrounding environment and particularly by your organisation’s leadership.
As an example of an enabling behaviour, 7–8 hours of high-quality sleep can increase our ability to learn by at least 40%.
Regular meditation enables us to better focus our attention and improve emotional regulation.
We will look at these enabling behaviours and environment in depth in the chapters called Physical Needs and Psychosocial Needs.
Simplifying the brain’s function
Developing awareness of how your brain functions helps you to better understand what influences your feelings, thoughts, behaviour and therefore outcomes and performance.
Metaphors help us to learn and as your brain is the most complex organ known to the human race, we simplify its functioning by using a metaphor called the Rider and the Elephant, coined by Jonathan Haidt, NYU. Among other books, Jonathan wrote the excellent book: The Happiness Hypothesis: Putting Ancient Wisdom to the Test of Modern Science.
The Rider and Elephant metaphor helps us to understand our behaviour and the behaviour of others. Thus it supports us in identifying and performing the required enabling behaviour(s) to achieve what matters most.
In Daniel Kahneman’s popular book ‘Thinking, Fast and Slow’ he refers to System 1 which would equate to the Elephant and system 2 which would equate to the Rider.
You can learn more about the Rider and Elephant metaphor in our free e-book that can be downloaded here.
It is important to note that this is a significant simplification, although albeit, one that serves our purpose in this e-book. To learn more about the brain I recommend Lisa Feldman Barrett’s book: Seven and a Half Lessons About the Brain.
In this series we will also explore:
- The impact of your beliefs on your brain and behaviour
- The impact of feeling safe in your work environment on your brain and behaviour
- How a sense of belonging, recognition, respect and factors such as self-esteem/self-worth impact our brain in social settings such as work
- The impact of having a sense of meaning and purpose in what you do on your brain and behaviour
- Practical tips and tools for optimising brain performance when you need to be at your best
- Polls, questions and engagement from you in the community on what works for you
Essentially we want our Rider to steer our Elephant towards the achievement of our desired goals and outcomes. Our Rider can do this when our brain has sufficient resources and this is possible by meeting our needs as described above. The next chapters will explore how we can meet our needs starting with the psychological need of a sense of purpose.
We hope you will join us and share your ideas and experience in this exploration.
Next article: Impact of having a sense of purpose.
The other articles in this series:
