How to focus and unleash max brain power transcript

most how-to Focus videos seem pretty random giving you a laundry list of unrelated tips that are hard to remember in this video I'll give you the most simple practical and intuitive step-by-step Focus system built from hard-earned experience in fact it's what I use to get into Harford for undergrad yell for medical school and Harvard again for residency first strategy is what I call the Sacred Space wherever you are designate a Sacred Space that you only use for studying or working imagine an invisible box around that space everything inside that box is Holy the Only Rule is this when you cross the threshold and enter this space you get to work no exceptions this is the altar at which the study Gods imbue your brain with knowledge wisdom and Clarity don't desecrate this space with low effort bull crap distractions or mindless activity this space can be a room a tiny desk or even just an imagined bubble around you when you work if you find yourself losing focus when in the Sacred Space leave this space immediately protect the sanctity of it at all costs this technique borrows from research done for insomnia it teaches you to treat your bed as a Sacred Space for nothing but sleep no phones no books no TV when you can't sleep you physically leave the bed until you feel sleepy enough to try again as a result you eventually associate the bed with nothing but sleep so the moment your head hits the pillow your brain automatically Powers down you want to form a similarly strong Association when you study the moment you enter your Sacred Space you want your brain to automatically fired on all cylinders ready to go if you implement this sit and start habit not only do you get the efficiency gain of starting work immediately you make this process even easier in the future as the association strengthens eventually eliminating procrastination from your life at no extra cost this is an example of what I call a meta skap skill and are the secret keys to success I'll make a future video on all the meta skills I use for Success so stay tuned the other thing about the Sacred Space is because it is sacred you must ensure it is meticulously Clean and Free from distractions at all times no exceptions using functional MRI scans scientists at the Princeton University Neuroscience Institute found that visual distraction of clutter in our workspace literally drains our brain power and blunts our ability to focus they found that when the Clutter was cleared the same brain scans showed increased focus and ability to process information increasing overall productivity Harvard Business Review Echoes the same concept bottom line keep your Sacred Space clean and minimalistic bonus points if you can bathe your Sacred Space in natural light easy way to do this is a study near a window and take in all this Holy Light this place is sacred remember neuroscientist Dr Miram Munch found that artificial light promotes drowsiness whereas natural light keeps you alert and focused now that we've talked talked about the Sacred Space up next is our second strategy and it's called The Sacred you just like the Sacred Space you are sacred your time energy and focus are precious resources that should not be wasted on anything though you may not feel like it your time is as valuable as Jeff bezos's or Bill Gates is while you may not be the CEO of a billion dooll company you are a CEO of something called your life treat yourself accordingly do you think anyone can just call it Bill Gates and waste his time you should be just as exclusive you may not have a secretary but pretend for a moment that you do emails text messages stupid meme videos these things don't just get to occupy your time whenever they want did they schedule an appointment with you in advance if not they don't get to reach you you're too important for that you are sacred and when you enter your Sacred Space you are an official business remember your mission statement is to become the best version of yourself and as the high-powered CEO of of this endeavor you have zero tolerance for as CEO you also need to be aware of other more subtle distractions if that stupid tag on your shirt is scratching you every few minutes it's not just taking away focus in a figurative sense it is literally interrupting the growth of a neuronal connection there are consequences to distractions that lost connection that was just about to be that Eureka LEL moment you were waiting for but gone forever now you should have worn comfier clothing and oop because of the way you're sitting your legs going to cramp up o now your butthole starting to itch should have wiped better when you were in the bathroom oh now it's the cck in your neck because your posture freaking sucks it may not seem like much but all these micro distractions add up over time stop handicapping your brain and flushing away all those light bulb moments you would have otherwise earned expand this concept to all your senses take an inventory of everything coming at at you what do you hear what do you taste what do you smell how do you feel maybe you're exhausted because you barely got sleep last night that's going to cost you maybe your breath is terrible and you're self-conscious about it that anxiety is going to cost you use common sense and eliminate anything that may bother you so that the only input you allow into your brain is literally to work right in front of you this is sp so this means get sleep stay hydrated empty your bladder and tell that darn chipmunk choir outside to shut the hell up if that's not possible play something to drown them out White Noise Loops of rain classical music basically anything calm and steady to smooth your audio experience once you've covered the external environment don't forget the internal environment your emotional state and your own self-generated thoughts this is what I call mental garbage which can be a huge distractor as well SP you know the stuff you fill your mind with when you doom scroll Tik Tok The Dread you get when you listen to news you literally can do nothing about if your mind is currently swimming with garbage it's time to do what I call a hard reset this is the Crux of strategy number three and it is simple in concept you start with high-intensity exercise followed by belly breathing focusing on the breath itself while your heart is still pounding from the exercise this should only take in total a few minutes the physical pain from the intense exercise shocks you out of your thoughts and forces you to pay attention to the present moment while the high int ensity exercise increases the production of bdnf a protein that promotes neuronal growth and brain connections but why the belly breathing according to Harvard researcher Dr Katherine Rosa belly breathing AKA diaphragmatic breathing stimulates the vagus nerve and activates the relaxation response reducing your heart rate your blood pressure and your cortisol levels the stress hormone produced when we get anxious this is perfect because you get to one immediately Escape any distracting thoughts two prime your brain for better cognitive performance and three lower stress and clear any anxieties it's the perfect onew punch combo to get into the zone for study and for work here's a quick tutorial on belly breathing sit in a chair Lean Forward rest your elbows on your knees and then just breathe naturally you should feel your belly expand when you inhale and deflate when you exhale once you get used to the feeling be in whatever position you like okay so you've cleared your mind minimize all external distractions clean your Sacred Space and bathe it in as much Holy Light as possible how long do you stay here simple for as long as possible strategy number four get rid of timed study sessions and rely on yourself if you're in the zone keep on going if you lose focus and you realize you're being inefficient stop and exit the Sacred Space simple as that many study gurus swear by the Pomodoro Technique the idea is to interrupt your study with regularly scheduled breaks while it may work for some it always seem inefficient to take a break when you're just just about to get into the zone and enter a flow State interestingly there's actually no rigorous academic studies proving the Pomodoro method here's my two cents use it if it helps you but don't adhere to it too religiously personally I think it's much more simple to be flexible each day is going to be different a standard time protocol cannot account for all the things we've talked about from how tired you are how emotionally unstable you are how inherently interested you are on the subject matter and how loud those darn Chipmunks are outside so just don't worry about it go with the flow and adapt when you do inevitably lose focus you can either utilize the hard reset once again or you can Implement strategy number five changing your Sacred Space I'm not sure if you noticed it before but for me I find there's an inherent shelf life to Any Given study space study too long in one area and it begins to feel stale that's okay because that's your cue to find a new spot this can be a different place in your home or a different section of the library or maybe even a new coffee shop research by by Dr Robert Bor of UCLA shows that changing your environment is actually beneficial for making new information stick in your long-term memory his research shows that our brains make subconscious associations between what we are studying and the background Sensations we're experiencing at the same time thus studying the same material in different environments may help the brain form multiple associations further cementing the knowledge in our brain's complicated network of brain cells increasing the likelihood for recall when you really need it like when you're taking a test or when you're in the ER and desperately trying to remember the dosage of a life-saving medication one final strategy despite trying everything if you still can't focus don't worry don't Bang Your Head On The Wall trying to force it today's maybe just not your day instead try changing the difficulty of the task study or work on something less cognitively taxing reserve the hard stuff for when your brain is actually up for the job or just relax completely call it a day and just try again tomorrow letting your brain recharge and repair UNR days is just as important as pushing the brain to its utmost maximum when you do hit the mental gy this is what I call the high-intensity focus cycle high-intensity Focus broken up by high-intensity exercise followed by most importantly high intensity rest I.E celebrate the beauty in the world and go do something that truly brings you Joy and fun I hope you found something of value in these methods it's definitely helped me accomplish my goals and I sincerely hope it does the same for you if you enjoyed this please subscribe for more tips just like this one and then go tell a friend your grandma and your pet hamster that's it smell you later