April 02, 2014

Boost Your Writing Brain Power




B is for Boost Your Writing Brain Power

If you’re anything like me, you will have moments that no matter what you do, you can’t get your brain working to conjure a single word for your current WIP. When those moments happen, try these 10 tips to boost your (writing) brain power:

1. Take a walk, go for a run, or exercise for thirty minutes. These activities are great for clearing your mind and increases blood flow to your brain.

2. Add a dash of cinnamon to your coffee grounds. Not only does it boost your metabolism and is heart healthy, cinnamon also improves brain function. I have made it a habit to add cinnamon to my coffee every time I brew a pot.

3. Smell peppermint and rosemary. Smelling peppermint can naturally give you a spike of energy.  It can also help you to concentrate and treat headaches. As for rosemary, this scent improves memory.

4. Massage your earlobes between your thumb and forefinger. I learned this from my fourth grade teacher. Massaging your earlobes reduces stress and releases endorphins. After you message your earlobes, squeeze the outer edges of your ears all the way to the top.

5. Munch on peanuts at your desk when you need a snack between meals. This is another thing I learned from my fourth grade teacher. Peanuts are a brain booster because they have protein and are high in vitamin B6.

6. Listen to classical music such as Beethoven and Mozart. It is proven that listening to classical music enhances mental performance, and can even help you to focus and finish tasks faster.

7. Drink peppermint tea, chew gum, or eat peppermint candy. As well as the scent of peppermint, the flavor can do the same thing. It also improves digestion and calms stomachs, which is a double plus!

8. Add a splash of blue or red to your desk. The color blue is said to boost our ability to think creatively, and red enhances our attention to detail. So buy a blue or red knick-knack for your desk or hang a painting/picture above your computer screen.

9. Read poetry. Poetry is a great way to kick start feelings and ideas, and enhances imagination. My favorite poet is Emily Dickinson. Who is yours?

10. Take a 30-minute power nap. All you need is to rest your eyes, calm your mind, and get a dose of energy. Any longer and you might end up more tired than you started.


SHARE: Your brain boosting tips.


A to Z Blogging Challenge:

A: Author Photo Tips




77 comments:

  1. All great ideas. Love it! I need it and I'm going to copy and paste for future brain power. Thank you Chrys!

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    1. Thank you, Cathrina! That's awesome. I hope they increase your brain power to superhuman levels. ;)

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  2. Great use to put all that mint that grows like a weed in my garden. And I've already brewed my coffee for this morning, but I'll pour a bit of cinnamon into my oatmeal in your honor.

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    1. Cinnamon in oatmeal is yummy. I hope you enjoyed it. And using that mint in your garden for brain power is the best way to go. Can you send me some? ;)

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  3. Chris - Oh, how often my brain shuts down!! #1, taking a walk with my children, is the first place I go - if the weather cooperates. I'm taking notes for my future.
    Thanks for the great post!

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    1. My brain has recently shut down thanks to a head cold, so when I'm all better I'm going to have to do a few of these to get my brain going again. haha Walking with loved ones can cure just about anything. :)

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  4. Great way to combine "B" and IWSG! New follower here. I look forward to visiting again!

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    1. Double thank you, Sylvia! I look forward to "seeing" you again. :D

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  5. Thanks, Chrys. These are great. I already do a few of them but many I didn't know about. Does cinnamon on toast do the same as in the coffee? I love toast with sliced bananas and cinnamon :) I love the classical music idea and reading poetry.

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    1. You're welcome, Lisa! I'm sure cinnamon in anything provides the same boost, as cinnamon is very healthy. I love peanut butter and banana sandwiches but I've never put banana and cinnamon on toast. I am going to have to do that for breakfast tomorrow! :D

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  6. Exercise is the one that usually works best for me, although I'm usually doing the music, snack and color thing as well. Guess I've been doing this long enough I've figured out a system. =)

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    1. Exercise is great for getting the blood flowing to the brain and is probably the quickest solution to boosting brain power.

      Good for you, Crystal! :D

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  7. I go to my garden and do some work, be it weeding or watering or something. It helps quite a bit. Going to try the coffee+cinnamon. Hopefully it tastes good in addition to being good for my brain.

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    1. Gardening is wonderful! I wish I had a garden so I could escape to it when I need a moment to relax and boost my brain power.

      For the coffee, just do what you normally do but simply add a small dash to the grounds. You'll be able to taste a hint of it. :)

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  8. Can I eat the peanuts, then take a power nap after reading Shel Silverstein?

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  9. I'm a huge fan of brain triggers and have posted a number of blogs at my site writeonsisters.com about the topic. I'll be doing the ear rub from now on, I didn't know that one. Great tips! Enjoying the A to Z Challenge blogs so much this year. Thanks, and I'll be back again. Robin Rivera

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    1. Thank you, Robin. I'm honored that I had one tip you didn't know. I am also enjoying the posts for the challenge. :)

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  10. Those are great ideas! I wondered how on earth to combine the A to Z with the IWSG post, given my theme, and just couldn't do it gracefully. I figured people would understand.

    Nice job! I like where you're going with this.

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    1. We definitely understand! A lot of people are posting two separate posts for A to Z and IWSG. I had the easy way out.

      Thank you, Holli! :D

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  11. Excellent tips. I do #6 & 10, but I'm going to try #2 & 4. Thanks!

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    1. That's great! I hope they give your brain power a boost. :)

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  12. Some great tips. I love the smell of peppermint and often drink it in tea. I've also heard of the rubbing the earlobe thing and a power nap works too!

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    1. I love peppermint, too. :) Having peppermint oil warming and candles burning is very nice in a writing cave.

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  13. Wow, these are great, and a lot of them new to me. I gotta get me some peppermint...

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    1. I'm happy to bring you new tips, Beverly. :)

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  14. I'm taking notes and massaging my earlobes at the same time. I do take power naps. I have to try the cinnamon and adding some blue to my workspace. The walls are blue.

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    1. Multi-tasking at it's best. ;) Having blue walls is an easy way to bring blue into a workplace.

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  15. Great post for B. I'll have to try some of those tips. I love Cinnamon.And peanuts but don't eat enough of them. Need to change that. Thanks for stopping by.

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    1. Thank you, Lynne! Go out and buy a can of peanuts now! ;)

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  16. These are great tips, I already drink a lot of peppermint tea so I'm off to a good start! I like the ear thing, too :)

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    1. I love all kinds of teas and peppermint is always one of my favorites. :)

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  17. Love these tips! I'll occasionally munch on dark chocolate covered expresso beans - a nice little afternoon pick me up. :)

    Madeline @ The Shellshank Redemption
    Minion, Capt. Alex's Ninja Minion Army
    The 2014 Blogging from A-Z Challenge

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    1. Dark chocolate covered expresso beans sounds delicious!

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  18. Awesome tips! I'm going to try a few of these. Thank you! :)

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    1. Thank you, Kimberly! I hope they boost your brain power. :)

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  19. These are great tips, Chrys! I just massaged my earlobes and amazingly enough, I feel better already!

    Btw, your fourth grade teacher sounds AMAZING! I'm sure she'd be proud if she knew all the knowledge you'd gained from her! :)

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    1. See? It works! :D

      My fourth grade teacher really was amazing and unique in every way. I bet all the students who ever had her think the same thing. :)

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  20. Great combination of ideas! I need this right now - I'm fading fast!

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  21. What an amazing list. I have just added the cinnamon, and messaged my earlobes, and I wasn't even stressed. Just practicing.

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    1. Thanks, Rhonda! Nothing wrong with practicing. ;)

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  22. Thank you so much for you kind support, Chyrs.

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  23. I've only heard of three of these! BTW, the earlobe trick also works for nausea in some people. A physician recommended that I try it when I had morning sickness oh so many years ago. :-)

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    1. That's good to know! Thank you, Li! I'll have to remember that. :)

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  24. As I reached the earlobe, my hand automatically went to the ear! Thanks for great post!

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  25. Excellent pointers!! I'm heading to the grocery right away! Barb Bettis

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    1. Thank you, Barbara. And thank you for visiting me during the second day of my A to Z challenge. :)

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  26. What awesome tips! I'm going to have to try some of these. I recently changed my desktop to a picture of my son in a ball pit. All those colors really get my mind excited when I look at it. :)

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    1. Thank you, Christine! It's amazing how colors can stimulate our brains. :)

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  27. I like cinnamon in my coffee, but I didn't know it did anything except just taste yummy. If I took a nap, I wouldn't get back up. Taking a shower usually helps me when I'm stuck. I think it clears my mind.

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    1. I've been putting cinnamon in my coffee ever since I found out about its benefits. It's a habit now. I can see how a shower can be stimulating. :)

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  28. I am going to try the cinnamon in my coffee. That sounds delicious. I didn't know that about the peanuts. A half a peanut butter is my afternoon snack, so maybe my cravings were onto something!

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  29. The power nab works best for me! Peanuts are a great boost of protein. Thanks for visiting and commenting on my post. :-)

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    1. Power naps are awesome, aren't they? You're welcome, Roland. And thank you for returning the favor. :D

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  30. I'll especially work on #4 and #10. I could also do with some color here.

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  31. I love listening to classical music when studying :) music in general is great stimulation to allow your brain to wonder

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    1. That's why music is my muse for whenever I'm writing. :)

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  32. Hmm. There's no blue or red on my desk, which is odd because red is my favorite color. If I listen to music while I write it's always classical piano.

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    1. Then you need to get something red on your desk asap! :D

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  33. Thanks for sharing these tips. I'm really excited to try adding cinnamon and the naps, lol. The naps sound SO awesome! ;) Thanks for stopping by my IWSG post, Chrys! :)

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    1. You're welcome, Jennifer! Just remember not to take too long of a nap. Although I know it's tempting. :)

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    2. So true! My kids wouldn't let me sleep too long anyway. ;)

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    3. You can always count on kids to wake you up. haha

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  34. These are such awesome tips! I needed these, thanks!

    Random Musings from the KristenHead — B is for 'Believe' (and Behold the Beguiling Beauty of the Beach)

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    1. You're welcome, Kristen! I hope they boost your brain power so you can write a new children's story. :)

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  35. I'm nobody, who are you? (Favourite poem) Currently reading a book of selected poems of hers.
    As for this list. Love it! So many great suggestions and I have to admit, I regularly do about half of them already.

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    1. I love that poem, too! I've actually used it in one of my WIPs. :)

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    2. Yes, I included the poem in one of my December r.a.n.t.s. 'cOOl Kids'. I picked apart the poem and the song Cool Kids from Echosmith.

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  36. I will spin around in circles with my arms outstretched until I fall on the floor, and then just lay there until the world stops spinning.
    Dumb as it sounds, sometimes it works.

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    1. I'm not sure if I'll try that. I don't like to be dizzy. lol

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