The Brain that Changes Itself by Norman Doidge, M.D.
I could not put this book down. I mean, I did put it down, because I had to be present for my family, do my job, make dinner, shower in the morning, and pick up my daughter from ballet. All of those things are important for the sanity and life of my family.
But there were times when The Brain that Changes Itself by Norman Doidge, M.D. was just too fascinating and intriguing that I didn’t want to put it down.
Why? It’s not an action book, or some other fling book with pictures that aroused other feelings. (I tend not to read those books.)
It’s because I was learning. And as I was learning, I was feeding a desire deep within my mind, which craves to learn, to grow, and to expand. It’s what Doidge said, to “feel fully alive.” It wasn’t a drain, it was exhilarating.
“We must be learning if we are to feel fully alive, and when life, or love, becomes too predictable and it seems like there is little left to learn, we become restless—a protest, perhaps, of the plastic brain when it can no longer perform its essential task.” – Norman Doidge, M.D.
A while back I heard something from an author mentor (not a real mentor, but someone I follow and allow to challenge and encourage me. They just don’t know it yet.) that caused me to rethink this coming year. He said that there was a moment in his mid thirties where everything changed. He could draw a line before this discovery, for him it was goals, and clearly see life before goals and life since making goals. It was a transformative moment that changed the trajectory of his life.
I thought, do I have the same moment?
For me, it was watching a virtual conference at my desk in my office.
Monica, my wife, purchased a ticket to a virtual conference for me. The author I mentioned above was speaking and thought I should attend. The only reason I could attend was because travel was light. I just had to go to my desk. (It was Spring of 2020, if that doesn’t explain it, I don’t know what else will.) The author was great, I wasn’t convinced yet, but there was another speaker who caught my attention and piqued my interest.
And I was forever changed.
From that conference forward I can see a clear transformation that’s begun within me. For me, it’s been learning. I’ve been voraciously devouring books, messages, talks, speakers and I feel like I can’t get enough. I’ve discovered what I’m so passionate about—learning.
And it will never end, because whether I’m learning something new, like how neuroplasticity has transformed rehabilitation, learning in schools, and neuroscience, or about the process of writing in On Writing by Stephen King, I can learn something and I can learn about learning.
It will never end.
For me, it’s been learning. I’ve been voraciously devouring books, messages, talks, speakers and I feel like I can’t get enough. I’ve discovered what I’m so passionate about—learning.
By reading this book, I learned so much about the science of learning and how the brain works that I can use that new information to better support my goal of learning. I don’t want to just read books, I want to learn what they say. And I don’t want to just learn knowledge, I want to be able to convey that information to help others be successful. Not just trivial pursuit knowledge, but knowledge that will help transform and lead others well.
There’s a lot to learn. At the center of it all is our brain, being able to learn and adapt and remember.
I’ve got a lot more to learn about how the brain works to learn new things. So let’s keep learning, because learning helps everyone get better.
“It [the brain] doesn’t simply learn; it is always “learning how to learn. (Merzenich)” – Norman Doidge, M.D.
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