Читать книгу Sort Your Brain Out - Джек Льюис, Адриан Вебстер - Страница 9

Introduction

Many people have a burning desire to be successful, some even have the know‐how. For those who don't there are literally thousands of self‐help books out there, telling them how.

Yet, despite tsunamis of ambition and an abundant supply of well‐meant advice, only a few people achieve real success and even fewer manage to maintain it.

The main reason is that despite being the most sophisticated piece of bio‐wetware in the known universe, capable of running the most phenomenally complex software, your brain doesn't come with a user guide.

Millions of people spend their lives scurrying around, all revved up, trying to get somewhere and devouring huge volumes of information on self‐improvement. Yet they don't have a clue about the engine under their bonnet, the nature of its profound capabilities or how to get the best out of it.

In other words, they – as captain of the ship – may have all the drive, passion and heart's desire in the world to set and maintain a particular course, but if the engine room can't deliver, they'll be left wanting, drifting in the doldrums of success.

Most take their brain for granted. Some even forget it exists. Others spend hours in the gym working away on the bodywork. But only a few realise just how much more they can get out of themselves with a basic understanding of their brain and a small amount of care.

In this book, we will help you to get a better understanding of how our brains actually work and explore ways of consistently getting more out of our own – often idling but potentially brilliant – high‐performance engines. Hopefully, we'll be able to help you achieve more with yours, whoever you are.

A bit about us

We first met back in January 2011 when we were both invited to speak at a conference in Tenerife. The theme of the event was “Are You Ready?” Our task was not only to inspire those attending but also to offer useful, practical guidance to help them be prepared for the tough challenges that lay ahead and enable them to capitalize on any opportunities heading their way.

As two very different people – with very different backgrounds and very different life experiences – we found ourselves working together delivering complementary messages, but from completely different perspectives. It was then that we realized just how impactful our combined knowledge could be and what a difference it could make to people at work and in their everyday lives.

Where Adrian's coming from

As a motivational business speaker I'd like to think that I am a highly motivated person; I'd be in the wrong job if I wasn't. I'd also like to think, having written self‐help books, that I have a fairly good idea of what it takes to be successful.

Despite being a reasonably fit, fairly intelligent and relatively successful person with bags of self‐drive and years of practical experience, especially when it comes to developing winning attitudes, I was keen to find out more about the hardware that supports the software – the engine that runs my mind.

I wanted to know more about my own brain, learn how to help it be even more productive and hopefully keep it in full working order for many more years to come.

Like you, I live in the real world. I run around at what often feels like a thousand miles an hour, juggling family, work and social commitments. There are times when, even as a motivational speaker, I feel a bit run down – especially when doing a lot of travelling. The gym can at times be very unappealing and with my batteries running low I don't always feel as mentally sharp as I'd like to be.

As a writer I sometimes find it hard to be as creative as I know I can be and despite having clear goals it can be difficult to stay consistently focused. On top of all this, when I do get to spend time with the most important people in my life – my family – it can be a struggle some days to unwind; my overworked brain just doesn't seem to want to stop revving!

As an everyday person I wasn't under any illusion that overnight I'd suddenly gain the combined planet‐sized intellectual skills of a mathematical genius, the creativity of a Renaissance master and the single‐mindedness of an Olympic athlete. I just wanted to sharpen up a little, consistently have more energy, hopefully stay focused for longer, be a touch more creative and enjoy quality time with my family. At the end of the day, I just wanted to make the most of the one I've got.

As a lifelong learner I'm not ashamed to accept all the help I can get, so I decided to team up with TV's favourite neuroscientist, Dr Jack Lewis, to see just how much of an improvement I could make to my own brain. I'm pleased to report that his practical advice has had an extremely positive effect and I have already noticed a tangible difference in my brain's performance.

As we progress through this book together, looking at ways to optimize the capabilities of brains, Jack and I are going to share with you all the practical advice that he had to offer me and, at the same time, draw on our diverse experiences to give you some helpful suggestions about how you, too, could improve the performance of your brain. Hopefully you'll take them on board, start using them and see what a difference they make to you.

For more information about Adrian – please visit: www.adrianwebster.com or tweet @polarbearpirate

Where Jack's coming from

Biology was by far my favourite subject at school. My fascination with what makes us tick took me into the realms of neuroscience, first at the University of Nottingham, then University College London (UCL) and later at the Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics. The latter involved post‐doctoral research using Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) to plumb the depths of the multisensory human brain. By the time I published my research in a decent scientific publication (Journal of Neuroscience) I realised that the time had come to move away from doing my own research – as I'd discovered my true calling.

Since starting my doctorate at UCL in 2002, what started out as a minor frustration had blossomed into an itch that I just had to scratch. The neuroscience literature is full of fascinating revelations about how the mysterious organ between our ears does what it does. Hidden between the lines of the various neuroscience research papers I was reading on a daily basis (and still do) were pearls of wisdom that I'd started using to get more out of my own brain. It seemed a shame to keep this all to myself. And as nobody else seemed to be doing it, I was determined to do everything I could to get these insights out into the real world: practical tips and tricks regarding what we can do, every day, to nudge our brains closer to our own personal maximum potential.

To date, I've shared insights into how our brains work with millions of viewers across the world via TV series on BBC1, BBC2, BBC World, ITV, Channel 4, Channel 5, Sky One, National Geographic, Discovery Science, TLC, MTV and most recently two series on Insight TV. I've also written two other popular science books as well as this one. And since that fateful day in Tenerife, I've now given over a hundred talks at individual businesses, and various industry conferences, helping all sorts of audiences improve their health, happiness and productivity.

For years I had a burning ambition to write a book that explained to everyday people how their brains work and how to get them firing on all cylinders. Thanks to Adrian, who'd already established himself as a best‐selling author, I finally got the chance to write this book. Ever since we got together to write the first edition, merging the worlds of neuroscience and business motivation, we've been passing on compelling, much‐needed, some might even say essential brain user information to thousands of people all over the world.

I've been absolutely blown away by the positive feedback we've received over the past few years! Whether from people who'd read the book and found it really helped them or those who hung out with us at the end of a talk to ask a brain question or two, it has been extremely rewarding to hear how much people got out of the first edition. Given how well the first edition went down and with so many exciting new insights to have emerged in the scientific research literature since then, we're hopeful that this second edition will go even further in helping everyone to get the most out of their brain at work, rest and play.

For more information about Jack, please visit: www.drjack.co.uk or tweet @drjacklewis