Cognitive blind spots. Everyone has them.  Cognitive blind spots are often manifested as repeated patterns of ineffective behavior or resolutions to change that seem to fall short of the goal.   The nature of blind spots is that one is perceiving limited data or is using inadequate methods of judgment to address a problem.   This phenomenon is similar to the blind spots you have when driving a car.  There are certain visual fields that are not readily apparent and you must mindfully check those areas for other cars or use a device to identify those vehicles. Similarly,it is difficult to correct for cognitive blind spots because you often lack the insight and resources to do so.  If you had these perspectives and remedies operating effectively already, then goals would always be met and change would be easy.  Such is not the case and that is where outside support in the form of coaches, teachers and mentors can be helpful.

Have you ever noticed the plethora of self-help books  in the bookstore?   What used to be a few shelves of books mostly by Wayne Dwyer or Dale Carnegie is now an ever-expanding selection of  remedies and advice that seem to provide a temporary burst of ideas and energy, but ultimately leads to limited meaningful change.  In other words, if self-help books were so effective, why would there be a need for more and more of them?   I am not opposed to using a self-help book as a vehicle for personal insight, and in fact, I have a collection of these books myself.  However, there is a tendency to default to the well-worn path in our minds despite our best intentions, often leading to frustration and despair.

Personal coaches can help by providing additional insight and accountability.  In my practice, I use the principles of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, my background in brain science, principles learned in my coach’s training and some meditation to assist a client in the process of change.  Following is an example of how this process might work:

A client may come to me with the complaint that even though he has no shortage of great ideas, he doesn’t seem to follow through on any of them.  He gets very excited about his new schemes and in fact, he can enthusiastically gather support for his ideas among his coworkers.  Inevitably, once the crescendo of excitement starts to recede, he loses interest and the project is never completed.  What’s more, this is a pattern that has been repeated so often, his coworkers do not take his ideas seriously anymore.

After getting as much information as possible using open-ended questions, I am likely to use one of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator instruments (Step I, II, or III) to provide additional insight into the client’s preferred ways to perceive and judge information.  Why?  The MBTI provides reliable insight into a client’s cognitive strengths and probable blind spots.

In this case, the client is an ENFP which is essentially characterized by someone who is cognitively energized by new ideas and possibilities, the ultimate brain stormer!  However, a typical blind spot for an ENFP personality type is inattention to details and a dislike of routine.  Once the initial burst of excitement has worn off, it is much more difficult to finish the task.  What’s more, wherever an individual has a blind spot, there tends to be a defensiveness.  Solutions are often blocked by an unwillingness to admit there is a problem in the first place or that the problem is your challenge not someone elses! It’s the my coworker who is so obsessed with details that makes this so difficult to implement!

Certainly, awareness of the problem is the first step.  However, because these cognitive patterns are preferred and well-worn in the brain, it will take more than just awareness to create meaningful change.  The brain is plastic and fully capable of lasting changes.   However, these changes require tremendous effort, motivation and in fact, a dampening down of  default methods of thinking to bring about these changes.   It is similar to a sled hill.  It’s easy to go down the paths that are already well-established but it takes deliberate effort to move your sled and make a new run.  That is how the brain tends to operate.

One way to make deliberate changes is to become mindful of both your present behavior and to create a reasonable alternative.   It is more effective to say, “I will do this instead of that” rather than, “I won’t do that.”   There are several forms of meditation that train the brain to resist existing patterns of thinking and refocus on new ways of thinking.  Meditation is an emollient to smooth transitions in the mind.  Particularly pertinent to the ENFP  personality type whose mind can run a million miles per minute in a million different directions, meditation can be very helpful.   Be mindful of details and following through.  Or at least ask someone who does this well, to help you.   Use your brain storming capabilities often but know what to shift to other modes.

Most of all, realize that change takes time.  The brain requires several opportunities to try out new behaviors before they become readily accessible.  In between the resolution to make a significant change and the actual attainment of the goal can be many challenges.   There is always the temptation to go back to the familiar.  However, with a coach, teacher or mentor that you trust and rely on, your chances of success are greatly improved.

Happy New Year from Annholm.net!   Make 2011 a very good year!

In June 2009, I completed the Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction program offered by the University of Minnesota.  This program is a certified version of the one pioneered by Jon-Kabit Zinn at the University of Massachusetts.  The 8-week program consisted of reading the book Full Catastrophe Living, reflective exercises based on the book’s concepts, and a series of awareness exercises such as body scans, yoga and sitting meditation.  Then in May of 2010, I attended the seminar The Brain Changes Itself given by Daniel Siegel and Norman Doige.  This seminar outlined the adaptability of the human mind especially when awareness and intentional focus are present.

I further explored mindfulness through reading the books Mindful Brain and Mindful Therapist by Dr. Siegel, Meditations to Change Your Brain by Hanson and Mendius and Train Your Mind Change Your Brain by Sharon Begley.   I continue to seek out new information and applications for using mindfulness in my life and offering it to clients who might be interested in exploring how it might benefit them.

Mindful awareness is a useful brain tool.  It helps an individual respond to a problem in a constructive manner rather than react to the problem in a knee-jerk fashion. Many of these reactions have been created by years of patterns of reacting to similar situations many times in a maladaptive way.  It is remarkable when you realize that many of these patterns are set long ago and probably have no bearing on the situation that presents itself at that moment.

Mindfulness meditation (one example is breath awareness meditation but there are many others) helps to strengthen the neural pathways of the medial pre=frontal cortex.  The pre-frontal cortex is not only the administrative center of the brain modulating important functions such as attention, flexibility, and initiation of task;  the medial pre-frontal cortex can modulate the activity between the emotional and reactive systems of the brain (For example, the flight of fight response of the amygdala can be overridden by the rational brain that informs the individual that there is no real danger.).  Indeed, mindfulness is brain training.

Overview and Practical Applications (partial list):

1. Building mindful awareness takes practice.  Simply reading about it will not produce significant benefits.  However, one study demonstrated that increases in focus can be achieved even through 20 minutes of breath awareness meditation daily.

2. There are some programs of study that are comprehensive and powerfully life-changing but also require a large time commitment.  One such program is the Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Program.  Currently, one of my clients is using this program as part of a team effort  to restore function after a head injury.  I provide some the cognitive coaching, primarily applying concepts from Full Catastrophe Living and others guide her in yoga and other physical exercises.  Today, she reported that when doing the Warrior Pose in yoga, it was the first time since her accident that she felt grounded and not dizzy. It was a powerful moment and a tribute to the benefits of this program.

3. There are many levels of practice and study to build mindful awareness. One should not shy away from trying because of concerns about competence or time constraints.

4. Not all meditations and practices are appropriate for everyone.  In my own personal experience, the 45-minute body scan put me to sleep and I was distracted by the imagery used in the guided practice tape.  I wrote 2 blogs about this experience: Ommmm or ZZZZZZZ and Zafu and Zabutons There is no point trying to judge yourself because something doesn’t work for you.  Keep exploring.

5. Pertinent to the MBTI, I found that meditation is a useful way to balance perception and judgment using the Myers-Briggs model of understanding psychological preferences.

I meditate daily for 20-30 minutes. I started out using Daniel Siegel’s 11-minute guided breath awareness exercise. After becoming comfortable with that practice, I purchased a snazzy pyramid  timer and usually do the breath awareness exercise without any guidance.    Sometimes I will experiment with some of the meditations from Hanson and Mendius.  I try to do yoga several times per week but if something has to be eliminated due to time constraints, it is usually the yoga work.

I have gained enormous benefits from Mindful Awareness practice.  If you are interested in applying this in your own life, I encourage you to try.  Please don’t be judgmental about your progress and know that there are a wide array of meditation practices available to you.  The key is to get started.  Namaste!

Mindfulness, meditation, and  breath awareness.  Is this all a big fad or can you actually gain a cognitive edge from sitting for 15-20 minutes each day focusing on the breath? A recent study published in Science Daily states even after 4 days of 20 minute breath awareness exercises, cognitive improvement can be measured.   Furthermore, Daniel Seigel and others have linked mindful practices to the building the middle prefrontal cortex area of the brain, the area that integrates cortical, limbic, brainstem, somatic and social input.  In short, the middle prefrontal region of the brain, when developed and strengthened like a muscle, can create a state of self-awareness that allows one to navigate the river of thought and experience without getting stuck in the banks of  either rigidity (too much judgment) or chaos (too much perception).  This notion of modulated balance between perception and judgment has significant implications for MBTI practitioners who use the awareness of the 4  functions (dominant, auxiliary, tertiary and inferior) to coach clients using the MBTI model.

In breath awareness exercises, one is instructed to find on the breath first at the level of the nostrils, moving to the chest and finally deep within the abdomen.  After fully identifying all components of the breath,  finding the place where the breath is felt most naturally is the next step.  Breath awareness exercises are not relaxation exercises, they train the mind to be focused.  When the mind starts to wander as it invariably will do, it is important to take note of that and gently refocus without judgment. From my own personal experience as an ENFP doing these exercises, I am amazed at how many thoughts dart through my head as I attempt to focus on the breath.  Anyone who shares intuition as the dominant function can probably relate to how difficult it can be to maintain focus and follow through on a given task or maintain a topic of conversation  when connections, patterns, and new ideas are emerging, competing for cognitive primacy.  The key is to be aware of what the mind is doing then gently redirect thought within the cognitive system. In my own experience with meditation, I have improved my focus as well as developed an awareness of when I need to to stop generating options and perspectives and use my auxiliary function, feeling, to craft a course of action.  In addition, as my ability to self-monitor my thoughts and judgments has improved, so has my ability to successfully access my tertiary and inferior functions.   This self-awareness assists in creating an elegant shift among the 4 functions all brought about by the strengthening  the prefrontal cortex area of the brain, the area that directs energy and thought throughout the rest of the human brain.

What if someone has a judging function as the dominant function?  Can an ESTJ use meditation to navigate the river of thought and experience?   The answer is yes because meditation is strengthening the fibers of  the brain where self-monitoring  and behavior modulation take place,  not the functions of either judgment or perception.  To use an analogy, it is like tuning up the transmission of a car allowing for improved shifting among the 4 functions.  Whereas excessive perceptive can create chaos in the mind, rigidity is the result of too much judgment.  So, taking the example of an ESTJ, who may be quick to render a judgment,  balance can be achieved by consciously shifting into the fact gathering mode.  In fact, one can go to any area of brain more easily if self-awareness and the ability to redirect cognitive activity is present through a well-developed prefrontal cortex.

Meditation can be tricky.  Many people are turned off by it because it feels like a waste of time. Others are frustrated because they don’t think they are “doing it right.” My first round with mindfulness and meditation was rigorous.  It involved 45-minute body scans, sitting meditations, and yoga.  With all that needs to be done in a day, it may be difficult to fit in all of the components of a comprehensive program.  However, for a less time consuming,  day to day application of meditation, I highly recommend a 20 minute simple breath awareness meditation. With this increase in awareness, it may be possible to shift more easily among the functions of perception and judgment.

*For more information on a good place to start this meditation practice, please see my article entitled “Breath Awareness Meditation” at annholm.net