Posts tagged brain

      There’s an old saying among spiritual guides—“where attention goes, energy flows.” It’s really a basic tenet of Buddhist mindfulness. Now it’s confirmed by science.

David Rock, business coach and author of Your Brain at Work, says neuroscience has proven that attention changes the brain. And, he says, “it does so in seconds.” In other words, you may not have to meditate like a monk for long stretches of time to get the brain benefit.

In a Google Tech Talk that I highly recommend, Rock says we can learn to make “attentional choices.” That sounds like discernment to me!  Rock isn’t pushing any religious agenda here, in fact, he would like people to understand that no one religious tradition owns mindfulness. That’s good news for us who are not Buddhist but do know the value of noticeably slowing the brain down by making “attentional choices.”

Quick way to do this? Focus for 2-3 minutes on one of your senses (sight, sound, touch, taste, smell) and notice what you directly experience. When your mind wanders from direct experience to some other story in your head, go back to the direct experience. Rock says when we do this, we develop the capacity to control attention and our brain is able to function at a higher capacity.

So here’s an exercise. Spend a few moments gazing at the photo above and see what paying attention shows you.