Ever since I saw the movie Limitless, starring Bradley Cooper, I've been obsessed with the idea of using your brain to its fullest potential. More specifically, the ability to remember everything you have ever learned, and be able to communicate that information quickly, effectively, and charmingly. So after years of trying to make myself limitless and chasing this peak mental performance, I've discovered that some of the most effective things that will help you get there are actually simple daily habits you can start implementing right away. So let's just cut to the chase. Here are five habits that you can start implementing today that will help you become limitless in real life.
1. Learn Broadly and Thoroughly.
What I mean by that is don't just read self-improvement books. If you want to be somebody who has just a mass of useful, relevant information, you have to expand your horizons. Read books about the cold war, Bitcoin, the stock exchange, ancient civilizations. Start getting some hands-on experience with repairing vehicles, repairing electronics, cooking good food by really pushing yourself to expand the subjects that you learn. Not only is that useful for you in your own life, but people will start looking at you like you're the most interesting man in the world.
The second part of this tip is to learn thoroughly. They say that you only need to read three books in a particular subject to know more about that subject than 99% of the population. Although this isn't concrete Science. It makes sense. A lot of people in this day and age don't have the patience or focus to get through one book from beginning to end. Let alone three books. So if you are someone who reads three books on a particular subject, you'll be an expert in that subject compared to most people on the planet. Also, when you read these books, make sure to pay attention. Don't be multitasking as you're reading. You might even want to bring a highlighter or a pencil, or if you don't want to mark up your book, bring a note pad.
So you can write down some of your thoughts on a chapter you just read. If you want to become limitless, reading isn't just an activity to pass the time. You're trying to soak in useful information that you can use in the future for when it's relevant.
2. Talk About New Ideas
Tip number two is to talk to somebody about the things you are learning and the books you are reading. So for the longest time, I'm talking several years; I was trying to teach myself how to be conversational in Spanish.
But every time I talk to somebody who actually knew conversational Spanish, I made the biggest fool of myself, but that all changed in the university. When I took two semesters of Spanish. And it wasn't because I spent a long time with my nose pressed in a book memorizing vocabulary because I've done that before. But the biggest game-changer was these conversation times that we had two to three times a week in Spanish in which the professor forced us for 20 or 30 minutes each lesson to implement all the vocabulary and new things we learned into our conversations with our classmates. As soon as the conversation went stale, we switched classmates and we just talked and talked.
In this process of soaking in information, thinking about it and then trying to use it in real life is integral. That is the full learning process. If you just do step one and you just read and read, it'll stay in your head and it will never come out. So if you really want to be somebody who is just overflowing with useful information, you have to practice not only the input of information but also the output of information. This is as easy as just talking to a friend for 30 or 40 seconds about a drink coffee or something like that. Just be like, "Hey, I've been reading this book and there's a concept in it that I find really fascinating." And hopefully, if you have a friend who's willing to actually talk about interesting ideas, that will spark a conversation and you can further reflect on the information and form new ideas around it. You can also join a book club or Toastmasters. Just anything that will help you communicate the information that you're putting in.
3. Learn to Meditate
Now if you're somebody who still hasn't tried meditation or you're kind of weirded out because you think it's some sort of Eastern Zen kind of; something to do with Chakras and spirit animals and stuff like that. That is not how meditation has to be. And my version of meditation is almost like a breathing exercise. It's more like a tool that helps me focus the longer the day goes on. I get completely scatterbrained. I'm such a multitasker, and I think of a million things in a million different directions all at once. So if I'm presented with a book or one single article editing task or something like that, it's very hard for me to focus on that one thing because my brain is just everywhere.
The way I collect myself is by this very simple meditation that I do. I just set a timer for five minutes. Doesn't have to take forever close my eyes. I breathe in and out very slowly for five minutes and I focus all my attention on my breath. I just bring all of my consciousness into my body instead of my mind.
That way, when the five minutes are up, I'm no longer scattered. I'm just in one place, and I can use that super collected state of mind to dive into the task that I need to dive into. My attention is now completely on that thing. It just does wonders for the input and output of information.
4. Reduce Social Media Use
I love technology. But when it comes to social media, I'm a lot more skeptical. Especially something like Instagram when you have a discover feed or main news feed or something like that. When you're endlessly scrolling through the explore page on Instagram, you're practically turning your rational brain off and your primal brain on. And you become sort of this entity who only responds to what will give them the biggest dopamine rush like a hot girl or somebody getting whipped in the back with a pool noodle. I can't think of one good reason to enter into that kind of state. It's completely useless and it makes focusing on more complex tasks really difficult. Social media is a great tool for communication and getting messages across. I use social media all the time, but I really try to limit any time on the explore page, anytime where I'm just kind of turning my brain off and becoming a stimulus sponge.
5. Take Care of Your Body
This includes things like going to bed at a good hour, waking up at a good time, staying hydrated, eating well, getting exercise. Your brain is an organ in the body. So what's good for the body is also good for the brain. There's no point in practicing the previous four tips unless you get this one right. Because what good is putting information into an information machine if that machine is rusty, ill-maintained, and smells like Doritos. So physical fitness is a great way to increase your IQ.
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