Mindset
Neuroplasticty
What is it?
In an essence, neuroplasticity refers to the brain's ability to change through growth and reorganise itself. Neuroscience researches discovered that one's brain and its capibility is not static or fixed at birth but rather ever-changing and ever-evolving. This is enabled through our behaviour; by keep on practicing and improving the challenge difficulty, our brain will reorganise itself, both in the short-term and long-term, to enable us to improve and pick up new skills.
Thanks to this discovery and related experiments, it can be seen that when we become aware of neuroplasticity and its potential, we are then capable of learning new skills and grow through finding our how and what we learn best.
While we can clearly see that neuroplasticity is real and has many promising benefits, there is a caveat to this, the brain of each individual is different from one another and so is neuroplasticity. It is not a one size fits all or in other words, it varies from person to person and from within ourselves. For example, it might be easier for one person to pick up a sport and excel within a short period of time while others struggle to make the same progress given a much longer period of practice. Therefore, as a learner, we should strive to find out the strategy or method of study that works best for us as well and what is best to study, and then keep on practicing and building on those good habits and behaviours. This will lead to the most growth.
What are some ways to increase it?
The short answer is, there are various enablers and they help differently through improving different aspects of our brain but ultimately they all come down to us (yes, you!). Find out what you enjoy to learn or study and how you would like to do them to stimulate your motivation and remain consistent with your good habits will be what helps unlock your potential. Below are a few suggestions to get you start:
- Play video games
- Learn a new language
- Make some music
- Travel
- Exercise
- Make art
Additional resources:
- After watching this, your brain will not be the same
- Introduction to Neuroplasticity
- 6 Ways to Rewire Your Brain
Growth Mindset
Source: Fixed vs. Growth: The Two Basic Mindsets That Shape Our Lives (accessed 08 May 2022)
As mentioned above, understanding neuroplasticity allows us to rewire our brain and subsequently develop and improve ourselves through practice. However, this in itself might not be enough to greatly raise our probability for success in some circumstances. You may question: So what else do I need ?. Thanksfully, scientists and researchers are already one step ahead of us. Carol Dweck, one of the leading researchers on th topic of mindset have pointed out that you should also adopt the power of a Growth Mindset.
At its core, Growth Mindset is the belief that your intelligence and abilities can be developed. It builds on the theory of neuroplasticity discussed above and supports the idea that our brain has capacity to learn and grow, but we have to believe in it.
I have learned about the differences between Fixed and Growth Mindset when I was working in my previous job, however I have never got the chance to research further into the topic. Equipped with the new knowledge of this topic, I now understand that on most occasions, my mindset is leaning towards the Fixed Mindset - a belief that your intelligence is static and cannot be changed and the opposite of Growth Mindset - which has hindered me from embrace challenges and learn new skills. I plan to put my understanding to good use through my learning journey at Dev Academy. This includes the "reorganisation and rewire" of my brain to focus on embracing the challenges instead of shying away, celebrate the effort I make through each sprints, and seek to learn from others as much as I can during my time here.
Additional resources: