I like to advocate that everyone should become a "master learner." To me, this means more than reading and remembering thousands of words per minute with speed reading skills. It means bringing into balance in one's life the many factors we often feel are out of our control. It means creating a lifestyle where you get to learn everything you want about anything and feel wide awake and engaged in the world.
We so often feel sad or sick or low of energy. The reality is that there is actually nothing to prevent us all from feeling happy, healthy, and engaged in the world. Unfortunately, some of our day-to-day choices get in the way and these choices impact not only our ability to learn and remember what we want, but all other aspects of our lives as well. Here are some things you can consider that will improve your learning and ability to remember, but watch out - these things will also improve every aspect of your life!
FOOD CHOICES
Too often we eat what we want without thinking about the effect the food will have on our body, mind, and mood. What we choose to eat is a very charged issue for many of us, me included, and it has many emotional components. But what if you thought about changing your eating habits just so you would have more mental and physical energy to get your reading and your work done? Doing it for that reason can bypass the emotional components and provide what I call a convenient "back door" to a very complex issue. Here's what you do to get started:
Get a piece of paper and draw three columns on it. Label the columns FOOD, FEELING, and TIMING.
In the FOOD column, start listing the things you like to eat.
In the FEELING column, for each food item, write how you feel after eating it. You might write sluggish, energetic, satisfied, full, sleepy, headache, or even heartburn.
In the TIMING column, write things like "best to eat in the morning" or "don't eat before bed" or any other thing that comes to mind.
Do this over the course of the next few days and what you will wind up with is a good idea of the foods you eat and how they make you feel. Do it in a computer spreadsheet and you can sort it and use it in other ways. Sort it on the FEELING column and you have a really good list to choose which foods are best for your learning activities.
If you have important study or reading time at 7pm at night, you want to be sure to choose food that make you feel light and mentally alert and energetic. Not a good idea to have turkey and gravy, which will put you to sleep right after! If you have an important meeting at 2pm (or a class or test or meeting with a client), pick a lunch that leaves you feeling light and energized.
Of course, controlling food choices for your learning and thinking activities will have a profound effect on every aspect of your life.
BODY CYCLES, RHYTHMS AND OUR SUBSTANCE CHOICES
All of us have natural cycles and rhythms throughout the day. Most of you already know if you are a morning or evening person, but take some time to learn more detail about your own cycles. Download a free 24 hour calendar page from http://www.worksheetworks.com/miscellanea/calendars/hour.html. Print out two pages. Make one 12am to 12pm and another 12pm to 12am. Then you have a 24 hour period. You could print them on two sides of the same sheet.
It might take you a few days or even a couple of weeks to map out your body's cycles. Most of us have to push though our day and use coffee or soft drinks to perk ourselves up. You may have to wait for your days off or weekends to complete the map.
Everyone has "peak" and "valley" times when they are either feeling up and energetic or tired and low of energy. Ideally, you want to take advantage of those times and do the things you have to be "up" for in your peak zone and do things you don't have to sparkle for during your valley times.
I find that it is best not to use substances like coffee or sugar to create an artificial high for a number of reasons. There are many negative health affects, but also your natural peak time will be a way better zone of productivity than anything that coffee can generate. Who came up with the notion that you are supposed to be feeling "UP" all day long? Your body and mind need a balance of times when you are feeling energetic and other times when you are feeling more mellow.
Map your cycles. For me, I find that when I have to get up early, I can do good thinking. If I have an 8:30 commitment, I get up around 4am. From about 4:30 to around noon, I can be pretty perky and get some quality creative work done. But around noon, I feel myself getting sleepy and until around 4:30, it is best for me to do things that don't require a sparkle to them. Of course, sometimes I have to push through and do what I have to. But you can still do many things in your valley times without using substances to create a peak.
From 4:30pm to around 8pm is what I would describe as a "medium peak" time and from 8pm to 10pm, I am very alert and do some of my most productive work then. If I stay up past 10pm, I get a second wind and could work until 2pm, but that would trash the rest of the next day and I would be sleepy throughout.
Right now, it is 12:50 and I feel myself getting sleepy and working harder than I should on this entry! Time to save it and finish it later.
Well, I got something to eat and feel more energized, so I am going to continue! Mood can affect your natural cycles as well and I really feel like doing this now.
So if your natural peak time is 6pm to 8:30pm, see if you can put your serious reading and study time in that zone. Then you won't need a cup of coffee to do what you have to do. Get to know your natural cycles and rhythms and work with them.
LIGHTING
Being under the right lighting has a huge affect on mood and learning. Fluorescent lights give off large amounts of harmful ultraviolet (UV) radiation that many believe affects your immune system. They also can damage your eyes over time, leading to an increased risk of cataracts other eye disorders. And they make most people feel edgy and generally gross. Pop them out if you can and use lighting that makes you feel better.
WHERE YOU READ AND STUDY
Do you serious reading and studying at a desk or table, not lying down or in a big cushy chair. You will likely be taking notes when you are studying seriously, so having a couple of square feet of order that you return to will get your body and mind in the habit of getting serious there. It won't take long of returning to that spot before you feel your body and mind getting geared up for serious learning when you sit there.
All these things together can result in a huge increase in your learning ability, your memory, and your health and enjoyment. Try it and see what I mean.
Warm regards,
Jackie
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