Routines

Most of us go through our daily lives with fairly fixed routines. We get up, get dressed, eat breakfast, and drive to work the same way every day. This isn't necessarily bad because it allows our brains to slowly speed up to meet the day, but it also doesn't give our brains any exercise. Since these routine tasks are carried out almost subconsciously, the brain uses almost no energy and makes no new associations or neural connections.

Even activities like doing the laundry or walking the dog can be so routine that you hardly even think about doing them. Each activity is a chance to give your brain some exercise and get it actually thinking. Try to add some surprise or novelty into daily activities. For example, drive to work using a different route. This will prevent you from going on auto-pilot and getting to work without thinking about how you got there. The new path will provide new and interesting things to see which will stimulate your mind and make new associations.
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* This article was originally published here