I’ve felt, as of late, somewhat stagnant in my level of creativity. I guess what I mean to say is that I have a hard time getting away from myself, or getting out of my own head. Not to sound too much like a teenage girl from the mid-90’s cult classic film Clueless, but everything that I do is just Soooo Jayme. Every thought and every idea is coming from the same place, so how do I get a new, fresh thought? Unbiased? Unseen through my very colored lens?

Maybe you feel the same way. Thankfully, there’s actually a lot of great research out there to help us with this problem. Many great strides have been made in the field of neuroscience and, believe it or not, there’s a few VERY SIMPLE things you can try that will increase your brain activity, the amount of grey matter in your brain, and create new neural pathways – all of which can lead to a healthier brain and more creativity.

Simple actions like brushing your teeth with your other hand, attempting a Sudoku or crossword puzzle, learning a new word from the dictionary and using it in a conversation, taking a different route to work or showering with your eyes closed will cause your brain to experience something ordinary in an extraordinary (or new) way. I read an article recently suggesting that I try these things, based on research done by a BBC program which concluded that doing these “brain exercises” can make you up to 40% cleverer within seven days.

If you feel like joining me in this experiment, please do and let me know how it goes for you! I’m only about 2 days in with this routine, so I’ll keep you posted with the results over the next few weeks. If you notice my videos getting better, then you’ll know why 🙂