Rolling With Your Runaway Brain

Have you met people who are described as scatterbrain? Some are all over the shop when it comes to completing tasks, or even in a conversation. They can shift from topic to topic with ease and fluidity, however may leave their conversationalists in a lurch. These intriguing, seemingly defocused people have comprehensive brains, and can engage and disengage because things make sense for them.

Let your brain run free! Like running barefoot, liberate your thinking as we have too much clutter exacerbated by problems, anxiety and mounting concerns. Bruce Lee used to utter a Zen saying: ‘Empty your mind!’ which is about creating ‘Beginner’s Mind’. Before we can learn, and truly learn, we will need to denounce what we think we know. If we believe that we know everything, we have hindered ourselves mentally from receiving more.

Too many adults concern themselves of appearing childish; programmed by tradition and notions of appropriateness. In effect, what we may want to seek is ‘child-like innocence’ when we get creative, and engage innovative practices. Focus on the useful, not on the use-less. Embrace great ideas, even if they are dated. The ‘classics’ are considered as such, because they have endured the test of time; just like endurance athletes who test their mettle and mental tenacity with long and oftentimes, lonely runs. Last weekend, I challenged myself to write a dozen articles and succeeded. At times the going was tough, but I ran with it. Run in the jet-stream of consciousness and creativity.

Run away with your thinking. Do different things. Add variety. Stop plunging your brain into boredom, or doing boring things. Be disciplined, but make discipline relevant to you. Smile when you run – it is a good sign of things going well. Lead a meeting according to your group vision: finish early, and accomplish your decision-making. Implement and monitor ideas! Recognise your staff for their contributions by engaging their suggestions and recommendations. Acknowledge that each staff may be an expert in something.

Have faith in people and ourselves – have a nice thought and run with it! 

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All the best to those doing Ironman Korea this weekend! Coach will be doing it, and I hope that he gets a good shot a Kona slot this year in his new Age Group. He completed the World Championships in Kona in 2005 after this third attempt at the Ironman distance.

It will be a few more days before I depart for the Gold Coast Marathon. I look forward to this experience – my 11^th stand-alone marathon, I think – and I will be connecting with some of my Twitter running friends. Sydney-based Soon, will be attempting a sub-3 hour marathon – this late-40-something did his first Ironman in Perth last year in a splendid time. Many Team Fatbird members will be making a brief exodus to the Gold Coast to enhance this big show. I am looking forward to it – another BQ would be nice, and a PB would be a bonus!