How to Increase Brain Power & Use It More Fully

We all lead hectic and busy lives. Many of us face constant demands on our time. That means that it’s key to work smarter. When you know how to increase brain power, you’ll complete tasks more efficiently.

It’s easy to feel overwhelmed and mentally exhausted. To optimize your daily life, you need to know how to enhance brain capacity. In this tutorial, you’re going to learn how to increase brain power in six different ways. 

The Importance of Building Brain Power

As we learn how to make full use of your brain, keep an open mind. Boosting brain power demands self-reflection. Using your brain more fully helps you balance your work and personal life. Tasks become less taxing and more fulfilling. 

They’ll take less time, and you’ll be more successful. And don’t fret—these techniques aren’t complicated. Instead, they’re vital ways to boost your brainpower and wellbeing.

Of course, it’s best to adopt all of these as part of your daily life. But even if you only use a few, you’ll enjoy the results. 

These are focused on many aspects of brain development. Some tips center on learning and building knowledge and new skills. But when you think of how to enhance brain capacity, you can go beyond that.

In this article, you’ll learn how to optimize your nutrition and reduce stress factors. Ready to get started? Let’s dive in and learn how to increase brain power fast. 

Commit to Lifelong Learning

Learning: it’s exercise for your brain. The benefits are manifest. First and foremost, new knowledge and skills can help you with everyday tasks. Find yourself struggling with a process or activity that you need to complete? Engaging in focused learning is a top solution. You can learn new skills or refine those that you already have.

But the benefits of lifelong learning go beyond just absorbing new facts. Think of your brain as a muscle. Just like any other part of the body, regular exercise keeps your brain in great working order. That means that any learning can help you boost brain power. 

Training your brain through learning can even lead to new opportunities! If you’re able to share knowledge and skills that you learn throughout life, you can form new connections. These can lead to more learning in areas that you’ve never thought of.

Many of us stay incredibly busy, and it’s sometimes tough to feel like a lifelong learner. But remember: any learning is better than none. Even something as simple as reading the news each day helps you learn. 

Spend a few minutes during a break from work reading an article or watching an educational video. You’ll be amazed at how much you learn in your free moments. Remember: you’re not just learning trivia. You’re giving your brain a workout, without seat. 

Exercise

We just saw that lifelong learning is mental exercise. But to know how to make full use of your brain, you should embrace physical exercise too. Again, there are many benefits. For example, exercise boosts the flow of blood to the brain, according to research from BYU. This helps you stay mentally sharp and engaged.

What’s more: studies show that exercise literally helps you build new brain cells! This delivers a major boost to your brain’s power and function. It’s imperative that you take care of your body because your brain will enjoy the benefits too.

Not only does exercise help enhance brain capacity, but it also helps you make full use of your brain. Exercise is a great way to de-stress and take a break. It’s a focused activity that’s often very different from your daily work. 

I find it really useful to step away from work and take a quick walk or jog outside. It gets blood flowing and helps me get fresh air. Try this out—any form of exercise will do. Giving your brain a break helps you stay focused and able to remain engaged to see tasks through. 

Exercise can also help with memory and recall, according to UT Southwestern research. Again, this is a great way to enhance brain capacity. 

With sharper memory, you’ll spend less time tracking down details. You’ll be able to draw on a richer base of knowledge and experiences to complete tasks and make new decisions. 

Get Proper Sleep

Ever pull an all-nighter to study for an exam in school? Odds are, you found yourself exhausted, unfocused, and mentally worn out. Why? A lack of sleep! Sleep is absolutely vital to boosting your brain power. The brain can’t be running at full speed at all times. It needs rest.

When you sleep, the neurons in your brain get their own rest. Without sleep, they begin to perform at lower levels. According to Sleep Foundation, this leads to sluggish thoughts and diminished mental performance. This is why it’s difficult to focus and think clearly after a poor night of sleep.

When you can’t focus, it’s harder to learn. Tasks take longer, and your decision-making can be impaired. A lack of rest is often to blame when you feel like your brain is running sluggishly.

And when rest is a factor, you’ll start to fall more and more behind on tasks and activities that you need to complete. It becomes a vicious cycle—you’re tired, you fall behind, and you become stressed. This, in turn, makes your brain work even less well. 

To get proper sleep, try the following:

• Set a routine. Try to go to bed and wake up at the same time each day. 
• Cut out distractions. Avoid electronic devices in bed, as they can diminish your ability to fall and stay asleep.
• Monitor your food and drink. Alcohol, caffeine and many foods can reduce the quality of your sleep. 

When you get plenty of rest, you’ll wake up refreshed. And when you do, your brain is ready to tackle any challenge!

Focus on Nutrition

Did you know that your diet can affect your brain? Indeed it can! In fact, it’s how to enhance brain capacity with every meal. 

Some foods are powerful ways to elevate your brain. Some of the very best are those with Omega-3 fatty acids. Many of these are very tasty: consider oysters, salmon, and walnuts! Fat forms over half of your brain.

Research shows that this fat is the fuel that helps build new brain cells. Thus, it’s very important to replenish those fats regularly. Think of that next time you enjoy some delicious grilled salmon or a plate of oysters! 

Just as there are healthy foods for your brain, some foods are unhealthy for your brain. These include many processed foods. Sadly, these are the very things we often find ourselves eating when we’re pressed for time. 

Similarly, foods with high trans-fat, mercury, or sugar contents are bad for your brain. Alcohol is also a poor choice for brain health. And remember, it can hurt your sleep quality too.

Additionally, try to incorporate these into your diet:

• dark chocolate
• vegetables
• coffee (but not before bed!)

In general, good nutrition is of great benefit to your brain. Remember, your brain is an integral part of your overall health. A healthy, balanced diet keeps your brain working at top condition. Choose foods that boost your energy, and your brain will reap the rewards.

Meditate and De-Stress

Ever tried to think hard and focus when you’re stressed or worried? Chances are, you found it difficult, if not impossible! Stress has a major negative impact on the brain. It causes you to focus on worries, reducing the bandwidth that you’ve got to think, plan, and recall. 

When stress becomes chronic, it can have exceptional negative impacts on your brain. Research from Touro University has shown that stress can destroy cells in your brain, and even make it shrink!

It’s obvious that stress can hurt your ability to fully use your brain. But what can you do to help manage your stress? Meditation is an excellent option. Meditation can take many forms. In essence, it’s a calming technique that boosts awareness and stability. 

When you meditate, you can focus positive energy to help mitigate stressful situations. It opens and focuses the mind. You reflect and relax when meditating, which works to reduce stress factors. And when you’re less stressed, your brain is ready to focus on the positives. 

Challenge Yourself With New Ideas

We’ve seen the importance of good health habits. They’re how to enhance brain capacity through lifestyle choices. Now, let’s look at a final tip. Always challenge yourself with new ideas. It’s perfect mental exercise, and the benefits are numerous.

Entertaining new ideas means seeking out different perspectives. Absorbing only what you agree with is a logical trap, and it’s bad for your brain. With an open mind, you can help your brain grow. Try to:

• Listen to different viewpoints. Learn about issues from all sides. Gather information from people with unique perspectives.
• Seek out ideas that you don’t agree with. Differing views help your brain exercise. Even if you don’t agree with something, you can learn from it. You’ll learn to fully understand concepts and issues by exploring all sides.
• Keep evolving. As you think about a concept, ensure that your thinking is ready to evolve. This is the power of perspective. The more you see, hear, and learn, the more robust your thought processes become. This sharpens the mind and makes you a better thinker.

You’ve learned how to increase brain power with six simple techniques. Embrace these to help your brain grow and develop. When you make the most of your brain’s capacity, you’ll be working smarter in no time.

The Best Source for Top PowerPoint Templates to Work Smarter (With Unlimited Use)

You can make full use of your brain by saving time on manual tasks, including with PowerPoint templates.

The best source for these templates is Envato Elements. Elements is an all-you-can-download resource for creatives. Thousands of custom PPT templates are featured. 

Expore Envato Elements

Saving time on slide design lets you focus your brain power on what matters most. With Envato Elements templates, you’ll enjoy:

• Stylish slide layouts. These help you present content in attractive, readable ways.
• Handy placeholders. You can drag and drop images and videos right onto your slides.
• Custom infographics. Smart illustrations like this help you organize data, thoughts, and ideas.

Elements is the best value for creatives today, and you can’t afford to miss out. Join today and start downloading!

Now You Know How to Make Full Use of Your Brain

In this article, you learned science-backed tips for how to increase brain power. These give you a powerful fulcrum to leverage your mental prowess.

Don’t hesitate—put our tips into practice today. As you learn how to make full use of your brain, I’m sure you’ll feel less stretched and more engaged. Your thoughts move more efficiently with a stronger brain powering them.

Editorial Note: This content was originally published in July 2022. We’re sharing it again because our editors have determined that this information is still accurate and relevant.