The Number One Tip on How to Cultivate a Sharp Mind
As you age, you may notice a decline in the sharpness and speed of your thinking. And this can be a scary realization. This is why you should work as much as you can to keep your mind sharp even as you age. The number one way to keep your mind sharp is by continuously learning. Let’s discuss how to cultivate a sharp mind, shall we?
Learning Creates New Pathways
According to Psychology Today, every time you learn something new, a new neural pathway is built into your mind. And when you stop learning, it only takes a few days or a week for your neural pathways to begin dying. This is what causes your brain to be less sharp. That is why you should try your best to keep learning as you age. Continually creating these new pathways will keep your mind young.
How Often Should You Learn to Make Sure You Cultivate a Sharp Mind
Of course, continually learning can be a tall order. This difficulty is why experts recommend that you aim to learn something new at least once a day. This is best done by enrolling in a class or engaging in a mind teaser game for at least an hour. You can also expand your mind by reading or learning a new language. Just make sure that your reading content is non-fiction to receive the best benefits from the activity.
Learning Socially
Besides just spending time learning by yourself every day, you should also make it a point to learn in social situations. This is because humans tend to learn best from watching other humans. Even if your activity doesn’t offer a class like mentioned above, you should try to join a club on a topic you are interested in. If you can’t find a club you are interested in, you could even start your own. If you like something like gardening, grab your gear and head over to the local gardening patch and see who you run into! Even if you aren’t mobile, you could pursue some sort of online group.
Overall, if you want to stay sharp as you age, the most important thing you need to do is never stop learning. This means you should try to learn something new every day. It doesn’t have to be hard, though, and you can enlist your friends on the journey with you! Then you can all enjoy the benefits of having a sharp mind. Lifelong Learning Can Help Keep You Sharp
As you age, it’s time to start thinking about how you can keep your brain sharp. One of the best ways you can keep your mind fresh is by committing to lifelong learning.
You’ll Enhance Your Brain
Just like any other muscle in your body, your brain is a muscle that needs frequent use to stay sharp. You can do this with lifelong learning, which means you aim to learn something new each day. One of the best ways to do this is enrolling in a class you’ve always wanted to take or studying a new language and practicing each day.
You Won’t Be Bored
One of the main reasons your brain loses its sharpness is boredom. When you walk a path of lifelong learning, this fights boredom and keeps your mind sharp. And the best part is, you won’t have to deal with feelings of boredom which could lead to other emotional issues down the line!
You Will Definitely Sleep Better When You Cultivate a Sharp Mind!
When you spend too much of your life inactive and bored, this can lead to issues sleeping. Instead, when you aim to maintain lifelong learning, this will help your mind to stay engaged during the day, then better disengage at night, which means you will sleep better as a result. And who doesn’t want to sleep better at night?
You Will Connect Better With Others
A major factor in aging is the importance of maintaining your social circle, as this can help keep you happy and healthy. This can be hard to do if you don’t have common interests or things to discuss. Lifelong learning can help with this as it can help you connect with new people who share your interests and maintain old friendships you may have already created. Learning helps expand your mind to connect with others better, and it gives you more to talk about to keep them around!
Overall, no matter how you look at it, lifelong learning is an important part of keeping your mind sharp. This is because lifelong learning enhances your brain, keeps you from boredom, and helps you sleep better. Not only that, but it will help you to connect better with others, making it a winning situation for everyone involved. Therefore, it’s time to take the leap and make lifelong learning part of your routine today!3 Secrets to Staying Sharp
Everyone knows that one individual in their life who seems to stay young and sharp even as the years start to pass by. Wouldn’t it be nice if that was you? It’s definitely a possibility, and all you need to know are these three secrets about staying sharp as you age.
Make Sleep A Priority
When they talk about needing your beauty rest, what they don’t tell you, is that rest goes far beyond preserving your outward appearance. Not only does sleep help you look younger, but it also keeps your mind sharp. This is because sleeping is a necessary part of the cognitive function and memory processing of the mind. As an adult, you should try to get at least 7 to 8 hours of sleep a night. If you struggle with this, it may help to remove distractions from the bedroom, such as the TV or your cellphone.
Move Your Body More
According to Psychology Today, movement is the most critical aspect of keeping your mind young for years to come. Movement helps deliver the essential oxygen the brain needs to survive and create new pathways. Without this critical element, the brain begins to dull rather quickly. This is why you should prioritize exercising each day if possible but try for no fewer than five times per week. While the exercise should be difficult enough to raise your heart rate, you also shouldn’t make it too strenuous on yourself either—only push yourself as far as you can handle. Even just chores or a walk around the block can be enough to get your heart rate up depending on your physical abilities.
Maintain Friendships
Humans are notoriously social creatures, so it should come as no surprise that maintaining your social life is an essential part of keeping your brain sharp. This is because you learn things through your relationships with others, and it helps to lower stress and feelings of anxiety. Although maintaining a social circle as you get older can be difficult, don’t be afraid to plan something with friends, even if it is just digital. You’ll find that you benefit from the interaction regardless.
Overall, staying sharp as you age is no easy feat, but if you incorporate these three secrets into your life, you’ll find that keeping your mind fresh and young is much easier than you originally may have thought. 3 Unique Ways to Keep Your Mind Sharp
No matter what we do, we all have to reckon with Father Time eventually.
You might already be feeling the effect of time. Maybe you don’t bounce back from a night out like you used to. Are you one of those people who let out some sort of grunt every time they get up from the couch? How is that hairline looking?
If any of those sound familiar to you, then you already know that time comes for us all.
Sadly, time also comes for our brain. It’s natural to get a little more forgetful or have more trouble focusing as you age. You don’t have to accept it graciously, though! If you follow these three unique tips, you will ensure that your mind stays sharp.
Drink a Coffee Now, this is the kind of tip that I can get behind! Starting your morning with a cup of coffee is not only a delicious way to wake up, but it can also increase your focus. Some studies have even shown that caffeine has an enhancing effect on long-term memory.
Have a Laugh
This tip might even be more enjoyable than enjoying a nice coffee. Find a way to laugh a bit more. You will have to figure out what makes you laugh, but typically throwing on a funny movie or standup routine works. Other people might need more social interaction. A quick call to a close friend will usually include a few good belly laughs.
Whichever way you get your kicks doesn’t matter, though. What does matter is the fact humor has been shown to improve student performance and decrease the stress hormone cortisol. This stress hormone can contribute to memory loss and other cognitive issues. A good laugh might help your memory!
Pick Up Something Heavy
Ok, it might not be quite that simple, but at the end of the day, that is what strength training is. While all exercise is good for your health (brain and otherwise), resistance training is especially adept at boosting cognitive function.
If you aren’t sure what strength training means, it is basically weightlifting. There are many programs for beginners, such as StrongLifts and Starting Strength, but working with a trainer to get the basics down is highly recommended.
Keeping your mind sharp is not only important but also downright vital to a truly happy life. If you are bored with some of the traditional ways to keep your mind sharp, try one of the three suggestions above. You might have so much fun that you don’t even realize you are working to stay sharp! How to Keep Your Mind Sharp As You Age
If the thought of aging makes you nervous, you aren’t alone. Age is the one aspect of life everyone must face at some point. Luckily, there are many things you can do now that will help keep your mind sharp as you age.
Don’t Ever Stop Learning
First and foremost, if you don’t want your brain to age, you need to make sure you never stop learning. When you learn something new, your brain formulates new pathways. So, if you stop learning, you won’t create these new pathways. Creating these pathways is important, and your brain won’t be as sharp if you aren’t creating them. The best way to keep yourself in a learning mindset is by signing up for a class or playing a challenging game daily.
Get Enough Sleep
This tip will be difficult for some of you, but one of the best ways to prevent your mind from aging is by getting sufficient sleep each night. This means that you should aim to get 7-8 hours of sleep each night. And not only that, but for this sleep to be good quality, you need to be in a dark room without distractions. Bedtime means it’s time to shut off the television and put your phone away.
Stay Active
Exercise is one of the number one ways to cultivate a sharp mind, and keep your mind sharp, healthy, and feeling young. You should aim to exercise at least five times a week, but it’s best if you exercise in some form every day. If you feel that maybe you aren’t physically fit enough to exercise, just get started somewhere. Activities like swimming, walking, and even household chores can count as exercise as long as you are working at them for a long enough time.
Eating Healthily Will Help Cultivate a Sharp Mind
This tip is another one that may be difficult, but eating healthy is an essential part of living a healthy and happy life. This means avoiding processed, oily, and fatty foods while eating more fresh fruits and vegetables. If you have questions about a balanced diet and how much you should eat each day, contact a nutritionist (or even better – dietician) for help.
Aging is a part of life for everyone, and although it may seem scary, as long as you do the things on this list, you will at least be able to keep your mind sharp as you age.
I’m bestselling USA Today and Wall Street Journal author Connie Ragen Green. My goal is to help at least a thousand people to reach six-figures and beyond with an online business for time freedom and passive income and to simplify your life. Come along with me, if you will and let us discover how we may further connect to achieve all of your dreams and goals. This is also why I want you to think about how you will cultivate a sharp mind, and become open to doing what it takes to change your life in amazing ways. Perhaps my “Monthly Mentoring Program” is right for you.
Leave a Reply