Quality Thinking

Problem or solution – where are you focused?

By Chris Collins, Life Coach.

Most people tend to focus on their problems to try and solve them, Neuroscience informs us that human evolution and our basic physiology are not set up that way, it simply won’t help us and is not what we would call “Quality Thinking!”

I was at a coaching event recently where the keynote speaker was Bret Freeman, a well-known Neuroscientist and Master Trainer/Coach, and I learned something totally new to me that I really wanted to share.

I learned for the first time that the human brain cannot focus on the problem and solution at the same time.

I knew our Primitive or Visceral Brain is programmed to keep us alive at all costs so if it sees a threat (or a problem!) it doesn’t want to spend time thinking, it just wants to act. Snake or Stick? Run first, ask later. Tigers’ eyes or Fireflies? You get the picture; it was literally life and death stuff to our ancestors.

We are all hard wired that way but what I didn’t know is that 'Threat Overload' is a natural thing for our brains to experience and it actually stops the thinking brain from physically getting the energy supply it needs to work effectively. The more we are confronted with our problems, the more our thinking brain shuts down.

Maybe that’s why only 10% of the best ideas happen when at work, surrounded by all our problems?

We all want to solve our problems in life, but to solve a problem we need to be able to think and think differently, hence the coaching mantra “You can’t solve a problem with the same mind that created it.”

We need to get some insight, get to that “Ah ha!” moment via nonlinear thinking, where solutions emerge suddenly for our biggest problems. These moments create new neural pathways, rewiring the brain irreversibly, leading to new thinking, memorable solutions that we own and so are more likely to act on.

As a Coach, how can I help get you more of these!?

Analysis of the brainwaves of people at the moments they have great insight has shown a massive spike in Gamma waves which was fairly predictable as this indicates peak processing activity and concentration. However, a few 10’s of milliseconds before this was a short period of Alpha waves which indicates the 'quiet' brain, the brain at rest, not thinking about anything specific. In this state the brain is ready to think differently with no boundaries or assumptions and great coaches use this knowledge to create the right space for their clients to move towards this quiet state.

The coach helps create quiet moments, positive mood, reflection, solution focused, giving the client the best possible chance to find their own way forwards, their own solutions and take action for themselves.

Perhaps this is why meditation and enlightenment always seem to be linked across all cultures?

So, meditate, do yoga, walk in the fields, bathe for an age, anything that takes your mind off your problems and lets it wander where it will and the answer will surely appear.

My initial question of Problem or Solution Focused has always been Solution Focused for Coaches but maybe this needs to be adapted a little now in my practice to include a good dollop of nothingness!

If you would like some support in getting to your answers, I’m here.

Chris Collins - ICF level 2 / ACTP Accredited Coach.

For further details and to speak to Chris call: 07973 179982

Email: chris_collins22@hotmail.com

You can also find booking details through instagram @chriscollinscoach

 Chris Collins Life Coach