Upgrading My Brain

I read Want To Upgrade Your Brain? Stop Doing These 7 Things Immediately. 

Item № 1 is Starting Your Day Too Slow, with a bulleted list of guidance:

Do you want to train your brain to be fast, in a flow state? Here’s how:

  • Wake up
  • Get out of bed
  • Make your bed
  • Get hydrated
  • Move on to your #1 task AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE

We woke up at 6:09 a.m. this morning after a better-than-normal sleep (№ 5, Failing to Rest, “If you want really, really good focus, and really, really good sleep…”). I was less groggy than normal, and mindful that, to succeed in life (I learned), I needed to not start my day too slowly.

Fortunately, Lisa got up to do yoga (№ 7, Not Engaging in Physical Activity, “You have to get your body running at a high level to support your brain…”), which removed my opportunity to remain in languid cuddle.

And so I woke up.

I got out of bed.

I made the bed (I did not make the bed).

I got hydrated.

(I set the coffee maker to run).

Have I moved on to my #1 task AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE?

When I say your #1 task, I mean important work that can change your life. Train your brain that you are capable of doing that task first. Because you are!

No, I have not. 

Or maybe I have. Writing is important. It does change my life. And I’m doing it before I’ve done anything other than wake up, get out of bed, not make the bed, get hydrated (and make the coffee).

I made the coffee with coffee from Costco. Because, as of Friday, I’m a Costco Gold Star member, a level of societal achievement I never ever thought I’d reach (yes, the Costco system has been relentlessly sending agents to convert me for years, but I’m speaking of a larger “oh, I have access to all the same tools and programs that normal people do” achievement). 

I was near a Costco because we decamped to Dartmouth for a week, to learn the basics of relief printing from Maria Doering. Which meant that, a week ago, I was doing things like this all day:

Linocut print of a candle, chopped into sections for jigsaw inking.

Lisa’s yoga is done. It’s 6:53. The coffee is ready. L. is being awoken above me. It’s time to make breakfast (from № 7, “Eat better nutrition. Put whole foods into your body. Get your nutrition dialed in.”).

The day is about to start. Or it already has.

Publish.

Comments

Steven Garrity's picture
Steven Garrity on November 20, 2023 - 08:40 Permalink

It’s a constant challenge to have wanted to have done something and not wanting to do something.

I want to have exercised, but I don’t want to exercise.

Another way to put it is that I want to be the kind of person who does X, but don’t want to do X.

I want to be the kind of person who gets a productive start to the day, but I also want to sit on the couch with my coffee and scroll through internet nonsense.

We don’t know what we actually want, and we don’t have our own best interests in mind.

Bob's picture
Bob on November 21, 2023 - 08:52 Permalink

Sounds a little like my days ( but no L and L), except when I get home from swim and gym, my “important work” is a good breakfast and checking the scores. :-)

Olle Jonsson's picture
Olle Jonsson on November 23, 2023 - 16:17 Permalink

I just did two rounds of morning gym activities, which a sort of this thing.

I'm waiting for the other shoe to drop, it's been kind of energising. Hoping for a good continuation next week. Aiming for Tuesday, Thursday morning gym. This is very "out of bunk, into socks, shoes, keys, peanut butter, run".

Good on you to start this!