Hack your own brain | Karolien Notebaert | TEDxUHasselt

Summary

The speaker shares her journey of self-discovery, emphasizing the importance of unlocking one's brain potential. She explains how internal interferences, like anxiety, hinder performance and contrasts this with the role of the prefrontal cortex in executive functions. The key to overcoming these challenges is mindfulness meditation, which can reduce amygdala activation and boost prefrontal cortex capacity, leading to improved performance and well-being. The talk concludes with a simple mindfulness exercise and an encouragement to practice it regularly for personal and collective growth.

Takeaways

• 🌍 The speaker left home at 16, driven by a desire to discover the world, but was naive about life's challenges.
• 👩‍👧‍👦 The speaker's mother advised them to use their potential to develop the best version of themselves, which took years to fully understand.
• 🧠 The speaker became a neuroscientist and focused on understanding how to unlock the brain's potential and reduce internal interferences.
• 🎤 Performance can be hindered by internal interferences like anxiety, even if one has the potential, as illustrated by the example of public singing.
• 😨 The amygdala, responsible for emotions like anxiety, can over-activate and block our potential, while the prefrontal cortex is needed for executive functions like planning and decision-making.
• 🔋 The prefrontal cortex has limited capacity, like a battery, and its depletion during a busy day can lead to poor performance.
• 👨‍👩‍👧 The speaker shared a personal story of dealing with everyday stress, explaining how the amygdala and prefrontal cortex function during the day.
• 🧘‍♂️ Mindfulness meditation can reduce amygdala activation and boost the prefrontal cortex, leading to improved cognitive, physical performance, focus, and well-being.
• 🐒 The default mode network, or 'monkey mind,' constantly produces thoughts that can distract us, while mindfulness activates the direct experience network, helping to quiet the mind.
• 🕰️ Regular practice of mindfulness meditation (starting with 5-10 minutes daily) can help unlock brain potential, and it can benefit individuals, families, teams, and even humankind.

Q & A

What advice did the speaker's mother give them before they left home at 16?

The speaker's mother advised them to use their potential to develop the best version of themselves.

When did the speaker fully understand the advice from their mother?

The speaker fully understood their mother's advice about 10 years later when they were working as a neuroscientist.

What question did the speaker focus on during their scientific and personal journey?

The speaker focused on the question, 'How can you unlock the potential in your brain and develop the best version of yourself?'

What does the speaker identify as the main cause of internal interferences that block potential?

The speaker identifies internal interferences, such as nervousness, anxiety, and negative thoughts, which are often caused by overactivity in the amygdala.

What is the role of the prefrontal cortex according to the speaker?

The prefrontal cortex is responsible for executive functions like planning, organizing, and processing information. It plays a key role in bringing mental peak performance when fully charged.

How does the speaker explain the depletion of the prefrontal cortex throughout a busy day?

The speaker explains that the prefrontal cortex is like a battery that drains over the course of a busy day, leading to mental fatigue and increased amygdala activation.

What strategy did the speaker discover to downregulate amygdala activation and boost the prefrontal cortex?

The speaker discovered that mindfulness meditation is a strategy that can reduce amygdala activation and boost the prefrontal cortex.

What are some of the positive effects of mindfulness meditation mentioned by the speaker?

Mindfulness meditation can improve creativity, cognitive and physical performance, focus, decision-making, well-being, and health.

What is the 'monkey' in the brain, according to the speaker?

The 'monkey' refers to the constant chatter of the default mode network, a brain network that produces thoughts and can lead to increased amygdala activation.

How can mindfulness meditation help 'shut up' the 'monkey' in the brain?

Mindfulness meditation activates the direct experience network, which is closely connected to the senses. This network cannot be activated at the same time as the default mode network, thereby quieting the constant chatter of the 'monkey.'