Feel Better, Live More with Dr Rangan Chatterjee

How To Master Your Brain’s 3 Gears, Improve Your Focus & Break Free from Stress with Dr Mithu Storoni #487

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Oct 22, 2024

This time, Dr. Mithu Storoni, a University of Cambridge-trained physician and neuroscience expert, explores the need to rethink productivity in our fast-paced world. She introduces her concept of the brain’s three gears for enhancing focus and reducing burnout. Mithu emphasizes the importance of aligning work with natural rhythms, taking breaks, and the power of walking for creativity. She also discusses how technology affects focus and contrasts modern work with the practices of long-lived communities. Prepare for insightful tips to optimize your work and mental well-being!

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INSIGHT

Brain's Three Gears

The brain operates in three gears: low-focus (1), focused (2), and distracted (3).
Gear 2 is ideal for knowledge work, but our current work style hinders accessing it.

INSIGHT

Shifting Focus to Quality

Modern work emphasizes quantity over quality, unsuitable for knowledge-based tasks.
AI allows humans to focus on high-level cognitive work, prioritizing quality.

INSIGHT

Work-Rhythm Misalignment

Modern work often misaligns with natural bodily rhythms, impacting productivity and well-being.
Aligning work with these rhythms is crucial for optimal performance.

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Today’s workplaces are rapidly evolving, and today’s guest believes we’re still clinging to outdated notions of productivity. Despite the shift from physical to knowledge-based work, many workplaces still prioritise quantity over quality and this is leading to stress and burnout for many employees.

Dr Mithu Storoni is a University of Cambridge-trained physician, neuroscience researcher and ophthalmic surgeon who advises many multinational companies on mental performance and stress management. Her latest book, ‘Hyperefficient: Simple Methods to Optimise Your Brain and Transform the Way You Work’, lays out the tools we need to retune our brains to their best settings for complex thinking, creativity, concentration, and decision-making.

In our conversation, Mithu explains her novel idea that our brain has 3 different gears and that if we can learn how to use them, we can dramatically improve our productivity and our mental wellbeing. She also explains the critical importance of aligning our work patterns with our natural bodily rhythms, the science of taking regular breaks, the specific benefits that naps can offer and the role of exercise, particularly walking, in enhancing creativity and problem-solving.

We also discuss the impact of modern technology on our ability to focus and relax, and Mithu contrasts our modern lives, with the lives of long living communities around the world.

This episode is brimming with actionable advice on how to work more effectively, protect your brain health, and find a more harmonious balance between productivity and wellbeing. Whether you're battling burnout, struggling with focus, or simply looking to optimise the way you live, Mithu's approach offers a roadmap to a more fulfilling and sustainable approach to life.

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Show notes https://drchatterjee.com/487

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