Today, I read an article from Inc. magazine (The Magazine for Growing Companies), which arrives monthly in my mailbox courtesy of my business coach. I’m always amazed to see how much of what interests the corporate world is also of importance to us in the healing and personal development world. In fact, one of my favourite all time quotes is from Dr. Paul Wiseman, Professor of BioPhysical Chemistry at McGill University, “The most exciting new discoveries of the 21st century lie at the interfaces of disciplines.”
The Inc. article is titled “Science of the Creative Mind” and it suggests 4 Creativity Boosters for entrepreneurs wanting their teams to unleash their creativity in order to boost profitability. And aren’t we are all personpreneurs in our own lives and don’t we want to boost our profitability too? The article suggested:
- Schedule meetings in the morning
- Eat a protein – rich breakfast
- Walk before – or during – meetings
- Reduce workplace stress.
The author tied all of this to brain chemistry. He based his comments on the research of Baba Shiv of Stanford’s Graduate School of Business. Shiv studies the role that neural structures play in decision-making and economic behavior and he has long been interested in the biological roots of creativity.
According to his research, the human creative experience resides at the interface of two primary pathways in the brain. One pathway is governed by the neurotransmitter serotonin. Serotonin is involved in whether you are operating from a sense of calm and contentment or from a place of anxiety and fear.
Now, on the other pathway, the neurotransmitter dopamine determines where your biology lies on the continuum between apathy and excitement/engagement. Optimal creativity occurs at high levels of both serotonin and dopamine. Serotonin is highest in the morning – an ideal time for brainstorming meetings. Protein is converted to both serotonin and dopamine hence the suggestion for a protein rich breakfast. Exercise releases a peptide that enhances serotonin – so walking pre or during meetings is helpful and of course, there is no better tool than EFT to reduce stress!
When I stopped to think about this, I recognized again why EFT has such a powerful effect. A consistent practice of daily EFT; tapping when anxiety arises during the day; and using EFT to resolve major and chronic trauma allows our biological system to enhance both its serotonin and dopamine production and to maintain a more optimal position on both those scales. EFT provides the ‘how to’ that translates this interesting research to a practical, hands on tool that enhances our experience of life in so many different ways.
Happy Tapping!
Nancy Forrester, Executive Director, NeftTI