The Mind Dance

NOT ALL THOUGHTS ARE CREATED EQUAL

Wise teachers throughout the ages have emphasized the important role that our thoughts play in our lives. Given the infinite diversity of thought types available to us, the question becomes, "Which thoughts?"

We can concentrate our attention or let it wander; think about the past, present, or future; ask questions or think of answers; make minor decisions or those with significant impact.

We can direct attention to our feelings, internal dialogue, or mental images; flavor any thought with a positive or negative attitude; electrify a notion with passionate caring; or diffuse it with ambivalence.

We can amplify our awareness with the energy and attention of synergistic dialogue; think about detailed issues or high level concepts; or vary our minds' brain waves between beta, alpha, theta, and delta.

All of these thought types can occur at various levels of conscious awareness and be organized within the context of heart frequencies or mind frequencies.


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If the hundreds of thousands of words in the English language can be formed from an alphabet of just 26 letters, imagine how many different thought combinations there must be. How are we to coordinate the mental dance between these various thoughts?


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Range of Thought Scale

Focus Daydreaming<-->Concentrating
Awareness Subconscious<-->Conscious
Time Orientation Past<-->Present<-->Future
Decision Minor<-->Destiny Shaping
Question Questions<-->Answers
Modality Kinesthetic<-->Auditory<-->Visual
Attitude Positive<-->Negative
Emotion Passionate<-->Ambivalent
Brain Wave Frequency Delta<-->Theta<-->Alpha<-->Beta
Dialogue None<-->Many People
Detail Level General<-->Specific
Metaphor Orientation<-->Ontological<-->Structural
Frequency Center Heart<-->Mind

This is excerpted from a great online resource. For more information on our ongoing mental dance... visit http://braindance.com/bd.htm by Patrick T. Magee author of Brain Dancing. Loads of free resources and information.

The Beginning

Advance Corporate Training Ltd. (ACT) is a brain-based learning specialist - our logo represents the six key secrets to ensuring learning takes hold in the learner and can transfer back to the workplace. Here are the six secrets and why engaging each one of them encourages higher learning levels.

Personal Relevance
(Association Cortex)
When we associate learning with what we already know, we are more open to a new idea. Info that supports our existing knowledge is better retained and transferred on-the-job.

Kinesthetic Learning
(Motor Cortex)
When we are engaged physically while learning, our brain operates more efficiently and we are better able to apply learned skills consistently.

Emotion & Engagement
(Somatosensory Cortex)
Emotion is often missing in many adult learning environments. When we emotionally connect to the material we learn more and deeper. ACT designs all its courses to engage this cortex.

Auditory Learning
(Auditory Cortex)
When we listen and speak we deepen our understanding. This cortex needs time to engage, so the start of all conversations should be “losable” data.

Visual Learning
(Visual Cortex)
We all need to have visual stimulation to be energized by learning. If we visualize our changed performance, we are more able to achieve it.

Broca's Area
Our ability to communicate clearly and to understand complex concepts is controlled here. Without learning that engages this area of the brain, we know but we don't understand and can't share our knowledge. True learning occurs after we achieve understanding, and performance change can not occur without understanding. This area was identified in 1861 by Pierre Paul Broca to be the “seat of articulation”.

Brain Fitness Basics

Intellectual ability (Brain Fitness) is a complex phenomenon influenced by many factors. In its broadest sense, intelligence is what people use to learn, remember, solve problems and in general deal effectively with the world around them. There are two kinds of general intelligence – fluid and crystallized. Fluid intelligence represents the biological basis of intelligence and measures of this (such as speed of processing and memory) generally increase into adulthood and then decline due to the aging process. Crystallized intelligence is the knowledge and skills obtained through learning and experience. As long as opportunities for learning are available, crystallized intelligence can increase through a person’s life.

The results you can expect from brain Fitness Program::
• An increased general adaptability to new problems in life
• an enhanced ability to engage in abstract thinking
• a capacity for knowledge and learning
• the ability to judge, understand and reasons
• enhanced short-term memory


Some interesting intelligence “facts”

• Those with higher education outscored everyone else
• Those with jobs in technical or professional fields or hold positions in senior management come out as clear winners in the IQ stakes
• Based on country
o New Zealand
o Australia
o Ireland
o United Kingdom
o USA
o Canada
• Brown haired men scored higher than blond men and redheads. Black haired men score significantly lower than everyone else.
• Black haired women scored lower than the rest.
• People who have a political inclination toward the centre or vote green scored highest


Interesting facts about your brain and intelligence

• Your brain has about 100 billion neurons. A typical brain cell has from 1,000 to 10,000 connections to other brain cells.
• The right side of your brain controls the left side of your body, and the left side of your brain controls the right side of your body.
• Your brain weight accounts for about 2 percent of your body weight. But your brain uses 20 percent of your body's oxygen supply and 20 to 30 percent of your body's energy.
• When you are born, your brain weighs about a pound. But by age 6, it weighs three pounds. What happens? Learning to stand, talk, and walk creates a web of connections in your head—two pounds worth!
• Your brain is full of nerve cells, but it has no pain receptors. Doctors can operate on your brain while you're awake and you won't feel a thing.
• In 1984 the political scientist James Flynn reported that North Americans had gained about 13.8 IQ points in 46 years. If people taking an IQ test today were scored in the same way as people 50 years ago then 90% of them would be classified in the genius level.
• A message for action travels from your brain to your muscles as fast as 250 miles per hour.
• Studies show that IQ is modestly related to the speed at which you do some pretty simple things such as comparing two lines to see which is longer.
• IQ is not influenced by family size or birth order. There is some confusion on this matter due to the fact that smart families usually have few children. However there is absolutely no evidence to suggest that you will have a low IQ if you belong to a large family. There is also no evidence that the first born child will be more intelligent than the rest.
• Modern neuroimaging techniques show that to some degree brain size is correlated to IQ.
• IQ has been shown to increase with more schooling, better educated parents and better toys.