Lesson 6: Powers of the Mind

The Workings of the Brain

The Mind
-Attention
-Mental images
-Thoughts
-Perceptions
-Emotions
-Memories
-Imagination
The Brain
The command
center that directs
actions.

The core
information-
processing unit that
make learning
possible.
Brain does not feel pain.
The pain experience for all of us begins when
unpleasant stimuli activate sensory nerve fibers
called nociceptors. – a sensory receptor for painful
stimuli. These specialized fibers which are located in
skin, muscles, joints, and some organs transmit pain
signals.
The brain itself does not feel pain because there are no
nociceptors located in brain tissue itself. This feature
explains why neurosurgeons can operate on brain
tissue without causing a patient discomfort, and, in
some cases, can even perform surgery while the
patient is awake.
If the brain can't feel pain, why do I get headaches?

Though your brain does not have nociceptors, there

are nociceptors in layers of tissue known as the
dura and pia that serve as a protective shield
between the brain and the skull.
• Hindbrain
• Instinctive automatic
behaviour.
• Mid-brain
• Muscle movements,
auditory and visual
• Forebrain
• Intellectual activity
Hindbrain
It includes the upper part of the spinal cord, the
brain stem, and a wrinkled ball of tissue called
the cerebellum.
The hindbrain controls the body’s vital functions such
as respiration and heart rate.
The cerebellum coordinates movement and is
involved in learned rote movements.
Examples: when you play the piano or hit a tennis
ball you are activating the cerebellum.
Mid-brain
The uppermost part of the brainstem is the midbrain,
which controls some reflex actions and is part of
the circuit involved in the control of eye
movements and other voluntary movements.
Forebrain
The forebrain is the largest and most highly
developed part of the human brain: it consists
primarily of the cerebrum and the structures
hidden beneath it.
The cerebrum sits at the topmost part of the brain
and is the source of intellectual activities. It holds
your memories, allows you to plan, enables you to
imagine and think. It allows you to recognize
friends, read books, and play games.
• The cerebrum is split into two halves (hemispheres).
• Although the two hemispheres seem to be mirror
images of each other, they are different. For
instance, the ability to form words seems to lie
primarily in the left hemisphere, while the right
hemisphere seems to control many abstract
reasoning skills.
• The right cerebral hemisphere primarily controls the
left side of the body and the left hemisphere
primarily controls the right side.
• When one side of the brain is damaged, the opposite
side of the body is affected. For example, a stroke in
the right hemisphere of the brain can leave the left
arm and leg paralyzed.
The Lateralization of the Brain

Controls the Right side of the Controls the left side of the
body. body.
The Whole Brain Theory
William Edward “Ned” Herrmann (1922-1999)
It pursues a holistic approach by encouraging you to
make use of all your thinking skills.
Analytical
• Rational
• Logical
• Factual
• Objective
• Quantitative
• Takes logical approach in problem-solving
Practical
• Organized
• Step-by-step, procedures
• Action-oriented
• Detailed plans are important
• Consistent
• Practical in solving problems
Relational
• Feeling-oriented
• Intuitive
• Attuned with other’s feelings
• Communication is important
• Values relationship with others
• Maturing
• Teamwork to solve problems
Experimental
• Creative, artistic
• Holistic, integrative
• Imaginative
• Follows ‘gut feel’ in solving problems
• Likes to try new things
• Future-oriented
10 Things You Can Do to
Increase your Mental Power
• Have A Positive Mindset
• Focus on What You Can Do, Not What Others Can Do.
• Develop Short Term Memory Loss
• Sit in Silence
• Practice Patience
• Learn from Failures
• Visualize the Win
• Always Strive to Finish
• Do Something Outside of Your Comfort Zone
• Enjoy the Ride
 Have a positive mindset.
Difficult times are a chance to find out what we are
truly made of.
Having a positive mindset will give you the
confidence needed to overcome any challenges you
may face and get what you want in life.
 Focus on What You Can Do, Not What Others
Can Do.
There will be people in life who will do whatever they
can to hold you back.
Ignore their opinions and stay on track by being
present.
The past is the past and the future is unknown. By
staying present, you can focus on yourself and
what’s important now.
 Develop Short Term Memory
Loss
Practicing short term memory loss though is
beneficial to better mental power.
This takes practice but can be a huge advantage for
you. When you get beat, forget about it. Pick
yourself up, dust off and move on.
 Sit in Silence

In today’s world, it’s easy to become overwhelmed

with work and life.
When feeling overwhelmed, a great sign of strong
mental power is the ability to tune out the noise
and sit in silence. It will help you view things
differently with less emotion and ego.
 Practice Patience

They say patience is a virtue and it sure is.

Today, we are so used to having things right now that
we forget what it means to have patience and let
things develop.
So if you are in the middle of a project, in the
beginning of dating someone, or starting a new
workout program, trust the process. It’ll make it
worthwhile because all good things come to those
who wait.
 Learn from Failures

We tend to see failure as the worst thing possible.

But those with strong mental power see failure as a
learning experience.
Failure brings clarity to situations. We learn the most
when we are not successful. If you have
experienced failure, think about what you would
have done differently and apply it to the next
project.
 Visualize the Win

Successful people with strong mental power are

always looking to improve.
Imagine whatever you are doing whether its
presenting a power point deck or writing a novel
and see that it will be successful.
 Always Strive to Finish

We think completing half a work is better than not

doing anything at all. Yes, it’s better to do
something than nothing at all but if you want to
increase mental power, you can not stop halfway
through.
A trademark of mentally strong people is that they
never quit and finish no matter what. Always strive
to finish.
  
Do Something Outside of Your Comfort Zone

We all have that one friend who is always looking for

the next adventure. They suggest skydiving over the
coastline, quitting your job to go backpacking, or
anything that brings on a rush.
A big part of increasing your mental power is pushing
yourself outside of your comfort zone. Living
comfortably can keep you from progressing as an
individual and living the life you want to live.
 Enjoy the Ride

It is not about the destination but the journey.

Enjoy the ride folks. You only get to do it once.
 Lesson 6: Powers of the Mind

MIND MAPPING
How to Mind Map?
1. Begin at the center of a blank page to give your
brain freedom to expand your ideas freely in
different directions.
2. Choose a central idea and give it a visual
representation to make it appealing, catch your
attention and to keep you focused.
3. Put colours on your work to make it appear
vibrant and exciting.
4. Draw main branches around your central idea to
stand for the associations you make with it. Use one
key word for each association. Connect other
branches (second or third level branches) to expand
your thinking. This helps in getting a clearer
understanding of your central idea and helps you
remember them.
5. Curve your branches to make it appealing.
6. Use images to represent your ideas in your mind-
map. It helps spark words or ideas in your head.