Boost your Brain's Output!

Most of us take breathing for granted. Take note! Sitting at a computer for long periods of time slows breathing and affects our brain. Try this little test – are your current breaths shallow and hardly noticeable? You could be in for triple trouble related to your physical health, ability to think clearly and frame of mind.

Interestingly, the subconscious act of breathing affects our mental and emotional states. “By paying attention to our breathing patterns, we can tune in to our internal condition and harness the core of our being,” according to Kara Schaad columnist for Chicago Sun-Times. Are you allowing your brain power to shrink? Why not turn that around?

To beat times when you find your mind goes around in circles or you face writers’ block here are two quick solutions:

1. Take a brisk 10-15 minute walk. Exercise brings more oxygen to your brain and optimizes functioning.
2. Take a mini-breathing break. Schaad advises, “While sitting at your desk, before a meeting, or before an important phone call, take a minute to totally immerse yourself in your breathing. The normal breathing rate for most of us is 14 to 20 times per minute. So you have 14 to 20 chances to practice effective breathing, all in just one minute.”

Suppose that prickly pear at your boardroom table just squashed your latest suggestion. What to do? Since many people hold their breath when they are hurt, nervous, anxious, scared or under stress, you can turn that around. Think about how much more effective you could be if you take a couple of very deep breaths right then. You could think clearly and take control rather than falling prey to the effects of Cortisol that floods your brain in crisis.

Do you feel a little low after working at your computer for long periods of time? By paying attention to your breathing patterns you could change that. For instance how are you breathing right now? Observe the depth and length of the breath and note the correlation to your physical state. As you continue to breathe, notice how it predicts your mood. Are you feeling calmer, yet more energized focused and relaxed? Shaad shares two easy strategies to turn our moods around.

• Try to start your day with one or two minutes of breath awareness. Set your alarm five minutes earlier than usual. Instead of batting the snooze button and rolling over, lie on your back, keep your eyes closed and pay attention to your breathing.
• Throughout the day, take mini-breathing breaks.

According to Dr. Ellen Weber our brain uses 21 percent of our body’s total oxygen intake. If your job prevents getting up for an immediate brisk walk, how about factoring in time during your lunch break! How about joining a gym or exercise club or taking up an invigorating sport like tennis? Whatever your choice, physical exercise nurtures your brain’s functionality!

How will you use breathing as a tool for your well-being?

Brain Mental Acumen Breathing

Change Comes through Colors that Attract

Color Design Change

Reading Marshall Spondor's notion about ways colors attract or repel people, led me to consider my original olive and lime color selection for Brain Based Biz. Have you considered colors either work for or against you on your blog?

Here are tips from Marshall you'd enjoy:

• the right colors can trigger positive emotions which motivate visitors
• bright bold colors tend to stir us up, while softer pastel colors calm and relax us
• strong bold colors tend to target men while women generally prefer pastels - consider your audience
• limit the colors to two or three and no more
• make sure the colors work well together and do not clash

Consider the ways color influences your audience. Let Marshall's list guide you as it did me.

Red - Action, energy, strength, passion, fire, heat, power, attention-getting. Can also mean love and romance. A strong masculine color. Red is a good color for a call-to-action. Red is cheerfulness, excitement, and warmth.

Pink is a soft version of red. It is most associated with romance, calming affect; a feminine color.

Blue - Confidence, travel, freedom, truth, professionalism, wealth and power. Also tranquility, dependable, acceptance, patience, understanding, cooperation, comfort, loyalty and security. It is one of the most calming colors and is associated with the sky and the sea, intelligence, reassurance, and trust. Blue has also been known to be an appetite suppressant, so it would not be good for cookbooks or recipes but you can consider it for diet books.

Green - Money, wealth, prosperity, calm, health, food, nature, hope, growth, freshness, soothing, sharing, and responsiveness. Green symbolizes spring, renewal, and fertility. Orange - Health and vitality, autumn, youthfulness, fire, steadfastness, courage, confidence, friendliness, cheerfulness, warmth, excitement and energy. Has been known to stimulate the appetite. Vibrant and warm, orange is associated with autumn and the earth.

Yellow - Light, purity, understanding, caution, brightness, intelligence, joy, organization, Spring. Yellow often represents sunshine, warmth, light, energy and happiness.

Purple - Dignity, sophistication, creativity, spirituality and mystery. Deep purple is associated with royalty and richness, while lavender is associated with romance and nostalgia.

Brown - Credibility, stability, the hearth, home, the earth, wood, comfort and strength. Brown can be used as a neutral or a warm color.

Black - Space, night, authority, dramatic, classy, committed, serious, power, elegance, and sophistication.

White - Purity, peace, perfection, fresh, easy, cleanliness, goodness, and spirituality. Worth noting here, white represents life and marriage in Western cultures, but it represents death and sorrow in Eastern cultures.

Grey - A conservative color, symbolizing security, maturity and reliability.

Leva Duell urges folks to think carefully before selecting:

Muddy colors - for instance, orange - tan colors promote introspection - consider instead a light blue colors, which promote lightness.

Olive colors work well for resturants - and Coffee Houses like StarBucks - but avoid them on a commerce site.

She says "companies that have spent a lot of money researching what colors work the best to their business - you won't find AOL using a TAN color anywhere - they stay with Blue and Blue Green for a reason."

Every day since reading Marshall's post and Leva's comment, I toyed with a color change for Brain Based Biz. I decided to move beyond listening to Web Analytical experts and actually do change!! How about you?

2 -3 Samsung Monitors Generate Blogging Efficiency!

Samsung Monitor Possibilities Blogging

Have you found your computer window isn't big enough to handle all you do even if it's wide? Yesterday, when I purchased a new desktop computer at Circuit City, Patrick recommended using 2-3 monitors. Skeptically, I asked, "How do you move items from one screen to the next.

Patrick responded, as most compter buffs do, "Simple -- move it with your mouse."

"How in the world would that work," I asked, wondering how something on one screen could possibly float over to the next. Patrick explained that he rigged three monitors to his desktop and it wasn't all that hard. He suggested a Samsung monitor in addition to the one that came with the new HP computer, since, "Samsung's hold up as well as top brands" and that I could save $50. I was a little skeptical that I could make this set-up work as well as Patrick's, but I decided to give it a try and start small with two. And so I ordered the extra monitor along with a Visiontek Dual Monitor graphics card, plus "installation" at my office.

At first, the ability to move an object through space between the two monitors, blew my mind. But as you see illustrated here, dual monitors create new possibilities. In teaching online courses, the flexibility of two screens is phenomenal. You can't beat it for blogging! I couldn't be happier with results unless I opt for a third monitor!!

What options can you think of to use your spatial intelligence in new ways?

Garden Your Way Past Stress

Garden Naturalistic Stress

I felt I had fallen into a trance I couldn’t come out from until the garden was completed. With Matsu’s help and patience, I had created something from the most common elements, and when the garden was finally finished I realized for the first time in my life that I had accomplished something. What I had thought would be so barren and distant was instead filled with quiet beauty.

Gail Tsukiyama, The Sumurai’s Garden

Ever consider gardening? Gardening heals as you see from Sachi above, who suffered leprosy and was shunned from her community. When my mother died, I found great contentment by working in my garden. Gardening brought me close to life, beauty and change. Or coming home from a work grind I found peace and pleasure.

The ancients built grottos and gardens into their plans because these spaces draw focus to nature and life itself. Do you find that to be true, when you take a walk through a park or a country path? Sometimes we just need space to meditate and withdraw from the world outside.

I visited this scene at Kells, an ancient priory in Kilkarny, Ireland, which thrived in the 14th and 15th century. Absolute quiet pervaded my walk through Kells, with the exception of crows and sheep, which inhabit crumbling ruins. As I walked by the grotto I thought about peace gardens bring to me.

Greenery is great to enjoy after a concrete jungle day. Planting can be done without much effort and even in small spaces. As you’ve walked through stores, no doubt you’ve noted the garden sections with fresh plants and lovely pots and urns that work well if you live in an apartment or condo. Go small at first and try plants that thrive without a lot of effort. There are lots of how-to books to help make a pleasing design. Ask gardners. They thrive on giving newbies tips.

Why plant and fit a garden? This morning I read the essence of a garden's affect on me --You have bedded me down in lush meadows; you find me quiet pools to drink from. The Message

Belly Laughs Bust Your Stress!

Humor Laugh Stress

Have you felt steam explode from your ears when that “prickly pear” at your boardroom table tries to sabotage a project? Do you sense that some folks don’t want to budge from comfort zones even if it would improve their work? Problem is, our gut gets tight and the steam shoots from our ears while the prickly pear remains calm.

Steaming ears or tightness in the belly show that you're drowning in Cortisol, a hormone which floods our brain when we need to react quickly in a crisis. Cortisol comes through emotional stress. Take NOTE! Too much Cortisol takes years off your life. So, we need strategies to step out of our emotions the minute we’re cognizant of them. But how, when we’re so-o-o consumed and so-o-o angry?

Anger or anxiety in the workplace breaks down with a belly laugh. For instance, look at this Dilbert cartoon. Ever had this feeling?

Are people more productive when Dilbert is part of the mix? Let’s sit back for a minute and think where Dilbert or Bill Belew’s, A Man Walks into an Office takes us.

Fact is, when I looked for a photo of Bill Belew on Google, all I could find was an Elvis designer. I asked Bill if these were actually his photos. He responded, "My dad was a big Elvis fan and my older sister by about 10 years once stripped naked at one of his concerts BEFORE that became the norm. So...my dad named me after Elvis' Bill Belew...who actually was Elvis' personal costume and wardrobe designer.But, then none of that is true. I was named after my grandfather and a great uncle." Just conversing with Bill is a stress buster!!

How might personal cartooning or even writing short Red Neck jokes take you and your associates beyond the prickly pear you face at work? Try your hand at portraying the prickly pear as Dilbert or Bill Belew would through absurdity. Cut to the chase and cut the Cortisol!


Best responses deserve a dinner with the boss!

Perspectives Transform Results

Perspective Design Waterford Ireland Spatial Meagher
Are you a person of habits? Routines are much like old slippers--they make us feel good. Habits work for or against us. For instance, good organizational habits keep us on target for daily work and long range plans...generating a path to success. On the other hand, habits can narrow our perspectives. Are your lenses clouded by routines? Want to change that?

Consider this scene... I saw a man, part of a tour group, point an expensive camera straight at Thomas Meagher's statue in Waterford, Ireland, to frame his shot. He was fairly close to the horseman, so he obviously had a typical tourist photo as a result, even though he had expensive equipment.

When I arrived in Waterford, I snapped a photo from my hotel window because the statue makes a statement in the midst of today's bustling traffic and economy.

At first glace, the photo looks fine, but not extraordinary. Since my view out the window is different than the tourist's at ground level, I had some advantage to capture this shot.

Not satisfied, though... I wondered how I could find an even better point of view -- one that might draw a "wow" from other folks -- even that tourist.

I thought about angles... A really close shot might give a different perspective altogether, but none were "gripping." Note the red geraniums in front of Meagher. Absoute intensity of geranium red... life in contrast to stone and steel...adds vitality my first picture lacked.

Red flowers, lifted sword--Meagher's words--Abhor the sword—stigmatize the sword? No, my lord, for at its blow, a giant nation started from the waters of the Atlantic, and by its redeeming magic, and in the quivering of its crimson light, the crippled colony sprang into the attitude of a proud Republic—prosperous, limitless, and invincible! -- Think about it!

Do you walk into your workplace with a routinized outlook? Where will that take you? Is it time for you to distinguish yourself from others in the pack?

Tap into your brain to create innovative and unique perpectives at your organization. Here's a few tips to start:

* Go overseas to explore how others accomplish similar tasks

* Discuss your process and outcomes with experts from different fields

* Ask workers what they would change if they could

* Consider your keywords in relation to competitors'

Are you in a comfort zone or already looking through a new lens?

Shut Down Your Stress

Stress Buster Brain Laughter

Like you, I have several stressors enter my life daily. Research on the brain informs us that stress eats away at our well being, and even shuts down our ability to learn. Does your mind go around in circles when you need it most? Stress in your life is likely the cause.

Cortisol fills your brain when stressors hit. Cortisol literally shuts down your brain’s ability to function well.

Today, I wanted to retrieve survey results only to find that I am unable to access them online. My back tightened and I panicked – you, no doubt, know the feeling. What to do???

Best results come by changing our focus immediately. Here are three great tips:
1. Laugh at a joke!
2. Get away from your desk, take a brisk walk and think about possibilities
3. Enjoy a quick mind game.

By changing your activity and focusing on something you enjoy, you can bring serotonin, a hormone of well being into your brain. By getting away from the stress, you can actually return to the original stressor with calm and thoughtfulness that brings solutions.

Reflect to Change

Reflection

Without reflection, we stagnate. Ellen Weber

Radar O’Reilly’s ability to anticipate was remarkable. How did Radar keep magic alive in so many arenas? I sense he frequently asked, Where to from here?

As the crowd, gathered at his battlefield musical extravaganza, clapped a final round of applause, Radar no doubt anticipated what he might do next time for an even better production. Do you reflect and ask, Where to from here? to bring more quality as you take on new projects?

People who anticipate really make a difference. People spot them easily since Radar reflective qualities are readily recognizable.

For instance, Blake Gottesman, President Bush’s personal aid spends more waking hours with the president than most other people and “almost no one is better, senior aides say, at anticipating his next move.”

Ira Wolfe asks in Business2Business, "Where are you Radar?" With so much going amuk in today's business world Wolfe suggests we need "more Radar's who can anticipate Col. Blakes' needs even before he realizes them."

Peter Davidson, marketing guru, suggests three proverbs for entrepreneurs based on inspiration from Radar O'Reilly.

• Cool ideas are useless without great needs –


• Build the simplest thing possible –


• Test everything with real people –

Radar gives us much to consider – What are you anticipating for your workplace? What do you see ahead?

Move a Multitude of Resources

Are You Resourceful?

As we follow Radar O'Rielly [the M*A*S*H character's] plans to present a musical extravaganza for the troops in his medical unit, we wonder how he "delivered the goods" on a battlefield. Radar always pulled through. How did he ever do it? To begin, he took risks and moved forward.

No doubt Radar pulled out his memo pad and quickly jotted down ideas. By thinking spatially and graphically, Radar did not limit himself to one way of accomplishing his plans. The musical comedy required a wide range of resources that would appeal to a large audience. To make sure he thought of all factors he created a graphic organizer.

8 Ways of Knowing . . . Resources for a Musical Extravaganza
Follow links on 8 Ways of Knowing or Intelligences below to learn more

1. Spatial >>>>>>>>>>>>>> Bright Costumes
2. Musical >>>>>>>>>>>>>> Songs and instruments
3. Logical Mathematical >>>> Organization of rehearsals, tickets, US goods
4. Bodily-Kinesthetic >>>>>> Gestures, choreography
5. Interpersonal >>>>>>>>>>Teamwork, roles and responsibilities
6. Intrapersonal >>>>>>>>>>Invention, New Ideas
7. Verbal Linguistic >>>>>>> Scripts, invitations, posters
8. Naturalistic >>>>>>>>>>> Environment, food
   

When you're assigned a project in your workplace, do you quickly settle on one way to accomplish it or do you take time to consider multiple perspectives? By considering the eight multiple intelligences , you can bring more quality to anything you do. If your target is to buy a home, ask someone's forgiveness, apply or a small business loan or launch a new marketing project, why not try Radar's strategies work to help you to establish great results? He seemingly brought a rabbit out of a hat -- so can you!

Take a Risk or Sit on the Fence?

What Makes the Difference?

Radar O'Reilly, weighed possibilities, thought about creating a great musical for the platoon and jotted down specifics to make it happen. At this point either Radar chooses to move ahead with his plans or put them aside till it "seems more feasible." Consider Radar's location -- near battle. Would timing make a difference? Each day was unpredictible and Radar didn't know what was ahead.

At this point, the point of moving forward, many step aside. You've heard all the excuses -- I don't have what I need to make it happen. People won't help. It's too much work. Nobody has done this before. Set excuses aside. Negativity stops folks in their tracks and it keeps you from living possibilities rather than problems. And if you keep thinking about it and letting your self go back and forth, you are creating a storm of sorts in your brain, because you are giving it very mixed messages. Radar did not sit on the fence. Radar took reasonable risks needed to move ahead.

What are risks you need to take right now-- a new job, going to college, reaching out to ask forgiveness, planning a family vacation, borrowing money to start your own business?

Radar took the risks needed to create a magical musical extravaganza near battle. You?

Go Beyond Questions to Set Targets & Expectations

"What if I...?" questions open doors to new possibilities... But what next? I've heard conference leaders say, a good idea is only a good idea until you take it somewhere. The way to make a good idea happen is to set targets so others capture your vision.

If we zoom in on ways Radar O'Reilly, the M*A*S*H character, set targets to entertain the platoon and great crowd beside, his targets might look like:

1. Plan a show for troops
2. Invite a wider community

Targets give us a bull's eye to shoot for! Keep your target in mind, think about it daily and hang on tight until you get there!

To make targets really worthwhile, expect great results! It was usually "no holds barred" for Radar's show and audience. Imagine jotting down the very best extravaganza...

1. Musical comedy
2. Actors, singers, dancers and musicians
3. Local residents, nearby units, general and officers attend
4. Costumes of quality
5. Invitations that welcome
6. Staging and backdrops represent another place and time

Can you easily see Radar's targets and expectations? They brought magic.

Try using targets and expectations any time new possibilities pop into your head. Go beyond a "What if I.." question to set targets and expectations for results!

Based on Dr. Ellen Weber's MITA method.

Question by asking, "What if I...?"

Background: Radar Imagination Radar Mindset Two-footed questions

Do you look at your surroundings and ask "What if I...?" Asking, "What if I..." not only piques your curiosity, but draws you in to do something about what you see around you. I'm almost certain that M*A*S*H's Radar O'Reilly began with this question.

In his medical unit, very close to the battlefront, Radar faced fears, short tempers, emotions of loss when friends died, pressure to get the job done quickly, overload, loss of sleep, relief when lives were saved and battles won. Yet in the midst of all this, Radar pulled off "magic." Would you like to "pull off" similar magic?

"What if I..." sparks our inspiration and leads us to invent.

To begin pulling off similar "magic," why not consider your environment in a new way, and ask, "What if I..." Real change happens when you go beyond a one time experience to develop a mindset as Radar did.

Try that today, come back here and share your results!

Developing a "Radar O'Reilly" Mindset

In yesterday's blog we considered Radar O'Reilly's amazing ability to get just what the M*A*S*H unit needed. Today, we take a closer look at Radar, an enterprising M*A*S*H* character. Note that Radar:

1. Worked from inspiration - to boost morale, to improve the work place, to invent


2. Anticipated needs - Radar looked beyond today to next week, next month, the next six months, the next year... He didn't wait to be told -- he was self-starting


3. Figured out how - Radar took initiatives to learn - perhaps he


• read "how-to" manuals


• researched the Internet [at least he would today]


• asked folks around him for advice


• convinced others to assist


• solicited needed resources
  
4. Moved on his plans - Rader put ideas into action; he didn't sit on ideas... Nor did he wait for approvals and bureacratic processes that often hamper getting things done. In this, he was a maverick, but wise and wary of going too far... He had the capacity to act wisely.
5. Stayed personable - He didn't let successes go to his head, but retained his quiet, behind the scenes persona.

Do you recognize a Radar at your workplace? How about rebooting your brain to use one of these strategies to get the job done today? Stuck in a rut? Is it time to change?

Do You Have "Radar O'Reilly" Imagination?

More: Imagination

Radar O'Reilly was an enterprising clerk in the TV series, M*A*S*H. Though his Army hospital platoon was situated near battle sites, Radar magically helped make theatrical productions appear from a hat in close-by tents. Though he lagged behind initially, Wikipedia describes his "near-magical abilities to get whatever the unit needed, to anticipate the demands and even the words of his bosses, and to hear incoming helicopters before anyone else. These latter two earned him the nickname, "Radar."

I wondered what generates a Radar mindset since today's businesses need imaginative strategies to move forward in fiscally tight times. Some colleagues referred to me as "Radar" in past work positions. So, in considering how that mindset developed, here's my two bit story.

When Dad returned from active Army duty, he worked for minimum wages at a local knitting mill, while Mom stayed home. With very little money, mother helped us celebrate amazing Christmases year after year, with just the right gifts, big family dinners and all the trimmings. My sense is that Mom must have licked a billion green stamps, pasted them in little booklets and redeemed them for the perfect gifts.

Interestingly, Radar imagination also germinated in neighborhood play. Lacking TV, friends and I invented our own games. We built "NASCAR" soap box racers from wood scraps and old wagon wheels. And, we competed in major competitive derbies as we catapulted down the town hill to win an elusive trophy. And, of course, some prizes were awarded to the most original creation.

Early in our marriage, my husband, had acute auction fever. Once, Carl raised his hand just in time to bid and purchase a State Park vehicle [120,000+ miles] for $100.00. Though it didn't surprise me, he never stopped talking about the great deal and his hundred dollar wonder. Our daughter, scrunched down in her seat when we drove anywhere so no one would recognize her. She called this black station wagon a Black Beauty. Trouble was, Black Beauty balked about starting. We lived in the country -- miles away from the civilization our kids craved... and when they needed to go anywhere, the Beauty proved not only stubborn, but antagonistic. One day, after getting advice from a neighbor, I impatiently unscrewed the top from the air filter and doused the chamber with ether aeorsol spray. The car not only started but backfired! :-) And, we rolled like Radar! In those days we were glad to have a car and not be stuck.

Looking back, when I observed Mom make much from little, when I joined neighborhood kids for creative play, and when I listened to expert advice on how to start a resistant car, I cultivated a Radar mindset. These events rewired my brain as Ellen Weber would say. I grew new strengths, which Dr. Howard Gardner describes as multiple intelligences... How about you?

Do you see Radars at your workplace? Want to share a story?

Stay tuned for Radar imagination at work...

Why Does Tone Matter?

How would you describe the tone at your boardroom table? Similar to a loud debate, a courtroom, a college lecture hall, a sensationalized news story, a picket line or a friendly family dinner?

What do your contributions look like? You’d enjoy insights to increase your tone skills from these quick and lively reads:

I Know that Already

The Dixie Chicks Teach How Tone Works

Cortisol, Tone and an Angry Customer

When Access Has More to Do With the Mind

Want a Work of Genius?

What Makes the Difference in Visionary Leadership?

Visionary Leaders Draw from Multiple Intelligences

Ever compare yourself to people who appear to be great leaders? Some folks wonder what it takes to become a leader with clout. Consider this angle… some leaders stand out because they typically take approaches different from the pack. Do they draw these out of a hat like magic? Not likely… Then how do top leaders develop so many of their gifts and talents? What can we learn from them?

Dr. Ellen Weber suggests that visionary leadership comes from developing “smart skills,” which are an interweaving of soft and hard skills. Her recent blogs featuring Katie Couric and Dr. Bill Cala provide specifics about how to lead with the brain in mind. Have you ever considered what might happen if you developed some of your weaker areas? Start small and see what happens! If you look through new towers in your mind, beginning today, where might you see yourself leading in the next five - ten years?

Myths or Imagination: How do you lead at work?

Imagination is more important than knowledge -- Albert Einstein

How does imagination factor in at your workplace? Would you enjoy using strategies to become a visionary leader? Leadership begins with our brain and the way we use it. This Brain Based Biz Blog features ways we can tap into extraordinary resources inside our brain that we probably are not currently using.

For over ten years, I've had the privilege of collaborating with Dr. Ellen Weber, Director of the MITA International Brain Based Center, to help leaders work with and not against their brains. This blog showcases strategies you can use at work tomorrow to "be the person you would most like to be." Let's launch by questioning myths we may have about our own smarts to rise above beliefs that hold us back at times.

Let me know how this changes the way you lead at your workplace!