Brain Technology: How Well Do You Know Your Brain?

The human race has constantly developed tools to make better use of the world and generate new economic platforms. From fire, flints, assembly line, to technology we have been incredibly agile at innovating and moving towards more advancement.

In our observations, our brain is the latest tool we need to develop and understand to move towards a new area of economy and enlightenment. This is the core of brain technology, learning how to use our brain to its potential.

When was the last time you questioned how your brain forms thoughts or ideas? Or are there things that you can do to make better use of your brain?

Did you know that zone one part of the brain can only take in 40 items per minute, whilst zone 2 can take in millions? Or did you know that it only takes 90 seconds for a neurochemical to flood the entire blood stream? These two facts seem irrelevant to business, but if you are only using the zone 1 of your brain to create ideas or solve problems, you will only produce patterned ideas rather than building new neurological circuits. Building new circuits and delving into zone 2 generates better solutions thus allowing us to better business strategists.

Or take the second fact, if we are constantly releasing dopamine over and over, we stop the brain from strategic thinking, however if you don’t release enough your brain does’t have the energy to create conceptual thought.

Knowing our own brain technology helps us make better use of our potential, which is what we need right now; we need better visionaries, thinkers, and innovators.

When you look at disasters like Japan, the economic crisis, the economic state of Detroit, it is not the use of old knowledge that will lead us to better answers, it is the understanding of our brain.

After all the brain governs everything, how we think, how we articulate thought, how we interact with others, our ideas, and ultimately how we do business.

The solutions are always there, it is just learning how to use the amazing technology inside our heads that is missing.

How Do We Do It

Every tool that IEA develops for innovation and business strategy uses brain technology. Our tools are new and are constantly being questioned, observed, and developed. This is to ensure tools are fresh, relevant, and innovative.

First Stage

We spend 3 weeks studying research from brain synapses, circuitry, diseases, neurochemicals, etc.

Second Stage

We extrapolate the knowledge and create tools for business and innovation.

Third Stage

We experiment with the new tools during PLATYPUS and refine them.

Fourth Stage

We use give the tools to our members in our spaces and to our corporate clients

How Is It Deployed

We deploy our brain technology through our collaborative workspace in London and soon in our innovation workspace in New York.

Trend Observation

One of Idea Engineering’s role within our two workspaces is to observe trends. We are currently looking at how technology and knowledge are playing a role in the rise of more panoramic economic model rather than the current hierarchical model.

An example is peer to peer economy as published in Gigaom.com. The basic crux of the theory is ‘transactions happen between individuals or a group of individuals and not between corporations and individuals.’ Some examples of this are Air BnB, Kickstarter, and workspaces like THECUBE and WECREATE NYC.

This type of economy is creating independence and equality, it means that anyone with a great idea and will can generate their own economy.

It all seems revolutionary, but if you look at native american tribes in the Amazon this has been their economy for thousands of years. There are no corporation or big governing bodies just individuals creating an equal sustainability through collaboration and power balance.

The question now is, will this rise accessibility and openness begin to erode at the corporate talons?

What if problems weren’t seen as a challenges but opportunities to learn new tools?

Our essays tend to be a bit on the long side, but for the purposes of time and our readers attention span, we are creating smaller entries. We are calling them ‘Business Wisdom’.

If one constantly perceives business challenges as problems, what does that do to our state of mind? Even the word challenge alludes to accepting a confrontation, which sets us on a defensive mode, causing a brain circuitry that is not conducive to cognitive thought.

Instead we have found that it is best to see the ‘problem’ as a tool. If for example, you are having a cash flow problem, instead of it being a problem or challenge, think this is an opportunity to innovate.

Low cash flow can be due to loss of clients, too many overheads, or a change in the market. Either of the three present an opportunity to generate new business tools and become better entrepreneurs.

If it is a need to generate new clients, switch into an innovation mode. Find tools that will help your company be more innovative in order to create better services, customer relations, communication, products, etc.

Segment Your Audience, Expand Your Community

Many of Idea Engineering Agency’s clients are non-profits or NGO’s (non-governmental organisations.) As they grow, they are faced with an increased interest level from not only foundations but also from potential partners, collaborators, or even the press. Many new successful non-profit organisations or NGO’s receive more requests for support from individuals or groups who may be outside of the organisation’s usual scope. The challenge this creates is a need to keep up with increased demand, without losing sight of your vision.

A tip for managing this is to understand who your audience is and to recognise who your community is. Your audience is the people whom you’ve identified to be most appropriate for you to help via your non-profit. Your community is your team, partners, investors, your advisors/board, your media relations, the independent contractors you work with, and anyone who might be interested in learning how they can help you or how you can help each other.

The idea is to identify which interested people or groups fit within the scope of your organisation as a core audience. The more you segment your audience, the better you can serve that smaller, core audience, and the better your organisation will be doing its job. If you are approached by others outside of this core audience who want help from you, you can support them by including them in your community: invite them to a staff meeting once a month, or encourage them to volunteer with your organisation, and they can learn by working with you how to emulate your organisation’s activities within their own community. For example, an after-school tutorial programme shouldn’t diverge resources towards developing neighbourhood clean-up programmes, but it can provide guidelines for others to start such a program by consulting on how to best recruit weeknight or weekend volunteers. That way, the neighbourhood still gets cleaned up, but you’ve also empowered a new group of thoughtful citizens to get involved and you are able to keep your vision focused on the core group you’re meant to support in the first place- making sure that those kids are getting read to or tutored in math.

At the same time, while interests from new audiences might arise, you may find that you’ve narrowed your community too intensely. Even in an age of virtual communities (you know the ones) that allow us to connect with individuals all over the world, many of us tend toward connecting with only the individuals or groups who look like us, act like us, or live near us. It’s a defence mechanism. It’s easier to band together with the people who get you than to even attempt to communicate with the people who don’t yet get you. But you risk homogenising your thought process if you build communities this way (the easy way) and don’t reach across the proverbial table to connect with less familiar communities. If you get outside of your comfort zone, you might have to work quite a bit harder to be understood, but you will gain insights, knowledge, and awareness from people with pools of thought so varied from your own you might not have even considered the existence of these ideas before.

Here’s a few ways to really, truly expand the community of your organisation:

Don’t be afraid of devil’s advocates- the hard questions they ask will help you build a stronger case for your vision as you try to articulate answers. In fact, you should invite a view of these to your meetings or to sit on your advisory panel.
Attend one public event each month where you can meet new people outside your current industry, neighbourhood, etc.
Be strategic: think about the areas of activity that surround your organisation’s vision and consider what you don’t fully know. For example- you are an arts organisation in Paris. How are the various political groups potentially affecting the arts in France? Are there model organisations in other cities that you could learn from? If so, reach out to them to learn how they’re handling such challenges. In other words, don’t just network with other arts organisations in Paris.
Think beyond your sector- are there lessons to be learned from the private sector?

All of these efforts towards expanding your community and going out of your comfort zone also increases the dopamine response in your brain that inspires fresh thought, increased motivation, and a more positive attitude- all things that will definitely help any organisation succeed.

Collaboration in NYC

NYC is widely considered one of the premier cities in the world. It attracts talent, diversity, and people who want to create great careers. Despite this reputation, NYC has not been highly ranked in recent articles in the innovation arena. This was an interesting observation, so we decided to create a discussion around the topic.

The feedback from the event was that many of these problems stem from people living in perception and not in reality. In other words there are certain perceptions New Yorkers have about success, but the reality of what works to achieve success is much different. This is not unique to New York- many world cities are facing this. Economic change is resulting in many of us re-evaluating why we do what we do.

We have listed the challenges, their reasons, and solutions.

Challenge: Lack of Collaboration

In times of flux it is comforting to cluster with types of people you know. In NYC people are not only facing the changes in the economic environment but also a change in their career. The city can feel big and cold, so huddling with your industry makes it feel more comforting and tangible.

Perception
The perception is that if this makes sense, why wouldn’t you want to be around people you identify with?

Reality
In reality people may seem familiar due to industry, however they may not have the same core values as you, making it difficult to collaborate and share ideas. Also, when you get into a room of people who are from the same industry you are faced ego and unhealthy competition. People feel protective over their idea and feel if they do share they will either be bullied or copied.

We are in this together, so the more ideas flourish, the more new businesses will flourish,which translates to a healthier economy.

Solution
The solution is diversity in all aspects; age, gender, industry, culture, etc. The more outwardly diverse a group is the bigger the knowledge pool. Think of it as the biology of ideas, if you start an idea in a homogenized knowledge pool, the idea will be weak and predictable. If you are in diverse knowledge pool the healthier and more unique the idea will be.

Tools
The glue in a diverse group is shared core values and vision. We may all be different, but our cores are quite similar. This is why at WECREATE events we introduce people by their interests, beliefs and preferences. Once people understand the shared core, building trust is easy, which leads to more altruistic and collaborative behavior. Try it next time you are at an event: ask people core questions (about the interests, beliefs, and preferences) and see how it makes a difference to conversation and alliance.

We recommend books like Group Genius by Keith Sawyer or Where Ideas Come From by Steven Johnson.

Proof
Look at industries that are natural collaborators, like Hip-hop. Or the Wright brothers and companies like Cirque De Soleil or NASA.

Fighting the January Blues With Happy Thoughts

This time of year is always difficult in the UK, we have the post Christmas bulge, a load of work that is stacked to the ceiling, and to top it off we have the lovely British weather.

On the bright side we can do things to trick ourselves into feeling better than we perceive. After all it all is about perception and perspective. If you feel negative, then you begin to use negative language, then that cause your brain to prime itself for negative experiences, which then causes real negative outcomes. For example, you begin with ‘argggg I feel swamped’, the the rant is going ‘the weather is crap’.. I’m tired ‘, next thing you know you only see the bad- you now sitting in a pile of gloom.

STOP. Take a deep breath. Relax your jaw. Lower you shoulders. Take another deep breath.

If you think about how easy it is to get yourself into a downard spiral then just as easly you can get yourself into an upward spiral. The aforementioned exercise is a physical execution which will have a neurological impact, which will then lead to a better psycholigical state. In common terms, fake it until you make it. Our brains are capable of anything, so battling a bad mood is a piece of cake.

Once you begin to feel relaxed, your brain releases seratonin, which brings you back to focus, calmness, and most importantly to a clear thinking head.

Next, start with a smile. In a recent study they asked people to just smile, no emotion, just the physical manifestation. After a few exercise they they were feeling much more optimistic and positive.

A positive attitude is contagious, people like to be around people that make them feel good. So start flexing your smiling muscles and feel your mood lifting.

Another tip is find things that make you laugh, watch a funny clip or think of something funny.

This sounds benign, however there was a recent study published on Harvard Business Review, which showcased the influence of humor. Two controlled groups were asked to solve a puzzle. One group was shown a funny clip the other wasn’t shown anything. The group with the video had more people able to solve the puzzle. The reason was laughter releases dopamine, which is the neurochemical associated with cognitive thought.

Be around people that are energetic and positive

Sometimes we just run out of steam, so being around people is important. This also helps release dopamine and it make us feel good. Going to a coworking space for example, where people are starting new things can be an uplifting environment. Everyone at THECUBE is usually in a great mood, because they are doing new things and naturally have high dopamine levels. It only takes one conversation with someone to lift your spirits.

Finally find activities and situations that make you happy.

Go see a movie, go for a walk, a nature retreat, eat your favourite food, etc. This engagement will also help raise your dopamine levels and you are on your way to feeling happy and fighting the January Blues.

The point is that you can easly generate an upward spiral. Start with smiling,then think positive thoughts, then find things that make you happy, and then see how many positive things your brain begins to scan. Soon you will find poetry in the different shades of grey in the London sky.

Do You Focus On Cause Or Effect?

As entrepreneurs, we seem to be primed by business theory to focus on results. Results based on financial forecasts, business growth, and profit. Yes, businesses need to profit, especially in these shifting economic tides, however when it comes to productive problem solving, focusing on “results” is the wrong way around. The reason why? Because focusing on “results” creates visual associations in your mind of an effect, and not the cause of your achievement. And if you cannot visualize the how, then you cannot achieve the effect.

Idea Engineering Agency has been conducting neurological studies as to why focusing on results is not productive, as well as what neurological functions are better for problem solving.

Let?s start with an exercise:

A. Imagine a horse jumping over a fence.

B. Now,imagine How a horse would jump over a fence?

Which setting engaged your brain more, A or B?

The majority say B. The reason is because when you ask your brain to imagine A, it is a within specific parameters. You have boxed in your results into old neurological patterns. In contrast, B asks a question, forcing the brain to move away from usual neurological patterns and create more associations, which then leads the brain to ask further questions, starting a catalyst for an innovative solution.

Recent research found in Norman Doidge?s book ?The Brain That Changes Itself?, defies our usual perception of the brain being like a computer, which stores memory. It is more like interconnected patterns attached to a circuit board. For example, we understand what a tree is because of its neurological pattern in our brain. As we hear the word our brain generates the most immediate neurological pattern, allowing us to ?see? the tree, which we then interpret and understand.

Relying on past neurological connections can be useful, such as when you are trying to find your way home at night. However, in business we are always looking to innovate better solutions, so we need new neurological patterns.

Try the following to create better neurological patterns in order to generate fresh new solutions:

Control What Is Possible Y=F(X)

Above is a problem solving formula used by industrial engineers. (Y) is the desired uncontrolled variable or desired result and (X) is the controlled variable or input. For example, a venture capitalist trying to decide whether or not to invest in a company should focus on why the company is a good investment (X). For example:

What are the functions of the company? What is its economic ecology? What is the philosophy/psychology of its leaders?, What is its relevance to (fill in the blank?)

If the X?s begin to add up to a good picture then the investor will be able to impact his desired result (Y), which is to make a wise investment. It is a simple formula: you generate good input (X) that effectively impacts the result.

Ask Questions

When you ask your brain a question it creates a feedback loop very much like a circuit. New research conducted at Yale University has found that the electrical field in the brain works like a circuit loop. So when posed with a question, your brain will continue to problem solve until it finds the desired solution. Ask questions like, “what are the qualities of a company?” Immediately the brain will begin to fire new neurological connections leading to a better solution and allowing the investor to spot an opportunity that might have otherwise been missed. Here are a couple of tips to make this work:Observe

Once a question is asked, sit back and observe the thoughts that come.

Relaxed Brain

When the brain is relaxed it is able to openly observe and find the best solution. For example, the final piece of the printing press was generated when the inventor was invited to a winery and saw the grapes being pressed. Now imagine if he was stressed or generating assumptions. He would have gone to the winery and come out none the wiser.

Power of Collaboration

Is it possible to do accomplish great things on your own? Is there such a thing as a lone genius?
According to Idea Engineering’s research these questions are alluding to a mythical view of achievement.

The Myths
I say that they are myths, because now that the research is in, they do seem like abstract constructions, however not too long ago they were very real. One is the concept of doing it alone and competing against others to reach a desired achievement. We have fabricated this notion and have seen it as positive social construct, however even in this instance we can’t have done it alone. There is a measurable trail behind each us of people who have helped connect us to the right people or resources, taught us relevant knowledge, or even inspired us and given momentum to your ambitions. That trail is full of collaborators, however social perceptions have not allowed us to see them as such.

The second is that geniuses are unique and work alone. According to the research conducted by Steve Johnson in Where Good Ideas Come From, it is far from the truth. Even the most genius and avid thinkers had a group of people around them, which helped them construct and catalyze their big ideas.

The Comfort of Myths

There are certain comforts in believing in the aforementioned myths. Number one they feed our ego, in other words, we feel like we achieved more if we think that we have done it alone. Number two it helps dilute responsibility to help others, if we think we did it alone then others can do it as well, making us less empathetic and less likely to help others. Finally, it creates the illusion that accomplishments are only for those lone geniuses rather than common people.

Problem solving with Six Sigma tools

There are many ways to solve and define problems, we at IEA have decided to use six sigma tools as they have been used to solve complex industrial processes and systems. Complex, however doesn’t equate to complicated, solutions can be both simple yet complex. Innovation for business is complex and layered, so it needs tools that can be adjusted at the various stages to provide the optimal simplest solution.

Below are three tools, we will be exploring them in further contexts both in articles and in PLATYPUS events.

Y= F(x)

All problems are a simple equation of Y=f(x). Y is the outcome of the problem and x is all the inputs that control the outcome Y. The goal in problem solving is finding ways to manipulate x’s which will lead to the desired results of Y. For example, if Y is building clients the x’s are researching their needs, creating new marketing strategies, modifying communication, re-branding, creating a service/product, extending your network, and so on.

DMAIC

DMAIC is a six sigma tool, we have modified it to the context of business and innovation. DMAIC stands for Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, and Control. This tool is when you are looking to improve, pivot, or create a change.

Define: Define the problem by going to the root of the symptoms. For example, a business can be short staffed, not generating profit, loosing customers. These could be symptoms of a more fundamental problem, like and outdated service or product.

Measure: Collect data, look at current processes, research.

Analyze: Look at data and ask questions. Go back and see if the original diagnosis of problem is correct. Sketch out new discoveries. Be a good observer.

Improve: Start to generate new process, make changes and pivots. This stage is experimental as you are still looking for the best solutions. Generate prototypes of possible solutions, try them out and get feedback.

Control: Every solutions generates other problems, so create a risk assessment. Basically what are the consequences of taking this action and continue to observe and adjust.

DMADV

DMADV is another six sigma tool, which use in making a new processes from scratch or looking to innovate. Here are some questions and tips to remind and ask yourself when problem solving, again we have modified to fit our context:

Define: What is the desired result

Measure: What is the complete impact of the idea or new process?

Analyze: Ask questions about how will the idea live in desired market, how will it be perceived, what are its vital elements? Also analyze other systems that are similar and pick out the points that you can use. Be open minded on the systems you analyze.

Design: Design the idea. What are its full dimensions and perimeters? Imagine that your idea is a Cube, it has to have full dimension of height ( how far do you want it to go) cubic space ( how will people interact and obtain your idea) it has faces ( the components of your idea). Ideas are three dimensional and need to be designed as objects, so they are ready to be played with.

Verify: Create prototypes that are low cost and test your idea with potential customers, go back and make changes if necessary, ask more questions and make new observations.

Pressure vs. Stress

We all need pressure in order to thrive and most importantly we cannot avoid it; whether it is caused due to scaling your business, having little cash flow, or getting an unexecpted wave of new clients, everything causes pressure. However, we must learn to see pressure as a positive, we need it otherwise we would just walk around in a blob-like state not engaging in anything.

Even in nature we see pressure as a driving force, a plant cannot exist if the roots do not create pressure to push upwards and lead the plant into the sun. Pressure also proves positive in engineering, take a car, it is the pressure of ‘mini-explosion’ in the engine, which gives the car the ability to turn on and go. Pressure in your business is also needed it forces innovation to find better solutions or create a better route to market.

At the moment we all feeling the pressure of the economic changes and even though it is having negative consequences it is also giving existing businesses a reason to analyse their weakness, it is moving graduates into enterprise, and its making the government look inward for solutions. These pressures will create better businesses, younger entrepreneurs, and will lead us to a new path of innovation and economic independence. Outcomes that in the ‘good-times’ would not have come about, because there was little pressure to create change.

So why do we spend so much time trying to avoid it? We have created a negative association between pressure and stress. Stress releases epinephrine, commonly known adrenaline, which then sets off a chain of reactions in our body to engage our flight or fight reflexes. In doing so, our cognitive reasoning is almost turned off as the body thinks it needs action not thinking. If we were hunting buffalo, the adrenaline would be incredibly useful, however in business it gets in the way of thinking. Stress of also causes other problems such as heart disease, insomnia, headaches, and so on.

Avoiding Stress

1. Set a realistic time-line and focus on big results rather than a long ‘to-do’ list

2. Exercise and drink a lot of fluids to release toxins, which can trigger stress.

3. Stay reactive and don’t get agitated planning and figuring out the future, we cannot control it.

4. Focus on solutions as we can control them rather than problems, which we have little control over

5. Breath from your lower belly as breathing from your chest begins to set mechanisms for agitation and panic. One easy trick is to put a pen in your mouth it unclenched the jaw and forces you to breath deeply, instantly relaxing you.

6. Relish pressure, once you invite it and see it as a positive, it doesn’t cause stress, but productivity and innovation.

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