Brain Hygiene
“Brain hygiene”? Srini Pillay explains brain hygiene and the ways your brain manages overload in this article at Harvard Business Review. He says:
At the core of managing information overload is the ability to know which function to use, and how and when to use it. The six principles below can serve as a guide to the proper brain hygiene for managing information overload on a busy work day.
His points take a bit of explanation, so click over and read in detail Pillay’s advice for dealing with information overload.
Coherence not Balance
There is a lot of talk about finding “balance” when trying to overcome burnout. But what if “balance” isn’t quite it? Dr. Anne Bradley proposes that the real answer is to find coherence, not balance. She explains why:
- Balance maintains constantly maintained equilibrium.
- Coherence embraces limitations dictated by a scarce world.
- Coherence in our vocations allows us to fully live out the narrative God has written and is writing specifically for us.
Rhythm and Margin
“Rhythm” and “margin” are two other common buzzwords. J. D. Greear states that they are, in fact, the two things we need to stay healthy.
Rhythm keeps you from running down. The alternative to following a rhythm is that you will find yourself rushing from one thing to the next, getting “inexplicably” tired. But it’s not inexplicable: it’s by design. Running wide open in everything you do wears you out…
Margin dovetails in to the idea of rhythm. A rhythmic life will be one that has plenty of “give” to it. Stress doesn’t just come from challenging tasks, but from maxing out all of our capacities. Margin means we intentionally keep ourselves from constantly running “in the red.”
Busyness Destroys Relationships
Is busyness destroying you and your relationships? Rob Tims uses the story of Mary and Martha to describe three ways this can happen:
- Busyness creates an inner turmoil because our work, even our work for that which is good, cannot satisfy us.
- Busyness creates an irritability with and sense of moral superiority over others, including God.
- Busyness leads us to question God’s character.
Sleep Schedules
It cannot be stressed enough how important it is to get good sleep. But that doesn’t just mean enough sleep, it also means consistent sleep and on a regular schedule. To see how weird sleep schedules can affect health, click over to this article at Mashable.
No Comment
“It is a very dangerous thing for finite creatures of limited intelligence to behave as though we are infinite beings of unlimited intelligence,” writes Adam Parker in “A Just Silence.” Parker puts words to what I assume many of are feeling in this age when shocking and important things appear to be happening all the time – we don’t actually have to comment on everything. And perhaps we are attempting to live beyond our boundaries when we think we do.
Jesus did not speak out against every single social injustice with which He was confronted. On one occasion, a man came to him to dispute a matter about his brother and an inheritance that their Father had left behind. Instead of speaking to that particular social injustice, Jesus said, “Man, who made me a judge or arbitrator over you” (Luke 12:14)? He then went on to warn the man about the dangers of harboring covetousness in his heart. Was Jesus wrong for not pronouncing judgment on the social injustice of one man withholding a portion of a father’s inheritance from his brother? Was Jesus complicit in that injustice? None of us would ever dare say such a thing.
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