Rewire Your Brain: Think Your Way to a Better Life

participant in the world. When are you truly present? ”
“ What do you mean participate in the world? I ’ m present! ” Angela 
insisted. 
“ Other than go to work and watch television, what do you do with 
your attention? ” I asked. 
“ It doesn ’ t seem like I have much time for anything else, ” she 
replied, then looked at me shyly, as if acknowledging my point that 
she had prevented herself from focusing her attention on anything 
else. 
“ Maybe it ’ s time to enjoy the rest of the world, ” I suggested. 
“ I have no idea what you ’ re talking about, ” she said, with an indig-
nant look on her face. 
I explained that her attention did not have to be wasted on nui-
sance worries that only increased her stress and adversely affected 
her brain. By learning to shift her attention, she could decrease her 
stress level and enjoy a more fulfi lling life. Angela acknowledged 
that she did not fi nd her life very fulfi lling, and she found herself 
living as if on autopilot. 
To break out of her autopilot mode and learn to shift her atten-
tion to being present in the world required that she break old habits. 
I therefore asked her to shut off the television, since it was wasted 
“ dead time. ” Initially, Angela wasn ’ t sure if she could stop watching 
so much TV; she said that she was addicted to it. She always felt 
anxious and empty after watching, yet at the same time she felt as 
though she hadn ’ t gotten enough. Although Angela didn ’ t actu-
ally have attention defi cit disorder, she felt unable to sit down and 
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190 Rew i r e
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focus on reading a book. It seemed like too much work, and her 
mind would wander by the time she reached the bottom of the 
page. 
I explained that her frontal lobe, and specifi cally her DLPFC, 
needed some practice developing attentional skills. Her brain needed 
to get in shape, and she would have to rewire it by making a concerted 
effort to pay attention. 
In the weeks to come, I taught Angela how to widen her attention 
span. This shift in focus helped her to develop a perspective that 
kindled more overall enjoyment and calmness. She learned how to 
practice mindfulness meditation, and this helped her to shift away 
from a superfi cial mode of attention to a broader, here - and - now 
focus. Mindfulness involved a new mode of attention that allowed 
her to savor the complete moment and not skim the surface of 
life. 
By applying the FEED method, Angela gained ground in rewiring 
her attentional circuits. Several times along the way, she became dis-
tracted by real - life events. First there was a confl ict at work between 
two coworkers who threatened to drag her into the fi ght. We talked 
about how she could focus on the positive aspects of her relation-
ships with each party and manage to stay friends with both. 
Next, a neighbor left a considerable amount of trash next to her 
property that became an extreme distraction every time she went 
outside. This served as a great opportunity to learn to see beyond the 
trash and enjoy the changing leaves of autumn. As other distractions 
occurred along the way, I helped her to get back on track and return 
to the FEED plan. Eventually, her life became far less complicated. 
Her visits to her doctor dropped dramatically, so much so that
he
actually called to check up on
her
! 
Angela ’ s case is probably more extreme than what you are expe-
riencing, yet it illustrates how someone can become so distracted 
by nuisance worries that she makes herself unhealthy. To gain her 
health back required a focus on the here and now. It meant rewir-
ing her PFC. By applying the FEED method, she felt not only more 
present but also more alive.
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Awakening from Sleepwalking 
Unfortunately, Angela ’ s attention problems are all too common in 
our society. Many people need to rewire their PFC. Their atten-
tion skills are slipping away from a lack of rigorous use. There is an 
increased tendency in our society to fragment our attention. 
Attention is critical for a thriving brain. Television and other mod-
ern forms of mass media have contributed to attention (and thus 
brain) problems. In the last thirty years, especially, these forms of 
media have catered to the lowest common denominator by adjust-
ing their formatting to meet the growing attentional incompetence 
of their consumers. The electronic media further increase the atten-
tion problems of their viewers. When you surf the Internet, one 
momentary click can move you off a page that does not completely 
grab your attention to another site that does. We have all the neces-
sary ingredients for an attention - defi cit society. 
All the fl ashing images in the media can wear you down. Your 
orientation response, which is your response to novel information, 
is continually exhausted by new images that fl ash before your eyes, 
giving you little time to recover. It is no wonder that after watching 
television, Angela felt drained yet also wanted more. These symp-
toms can also occur after surfi ng the Internet for a long time. Media 
addiction is no mere metaphor. 
A lifetime of media consumption can take its toll. In fact, excessive 
consumption of television during early childhood has been shown to 
have long - lasting detrimental effects. For example, excessive exposure 
to television correlates with problems paying attention and controlling 
impulses years later. An important study of twenty - six toddlers found 
that the amount of exposure to television between ages one and three 
correlated with the diagnosis of ADHD by age seven. Specifi cally, 
for every hour of TV the toddlers watched each day, their chances of 
developing serious problems with attention increased by 10 percent. 
There are too many aspects of our society that seduce you into 
seeing only the superfi cial and the sensational. Movies, television, 
and even the news have melted down our concerns to mediocrity. 
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Pictures of Angelina Jolie ’ s babies get far more coverage in the press 
than the destitute in Africa do, which she tried to draw attention to. 
You should try to wake up from this societal sleepwalking and 
break out of autopilot to pay attention to the depth and complexity 
below the glaze and sensation. Waking up involves paying attention 
to even the most routine of tasks. For example, as you drive to work 
each day on the same highway, you can become numb to your sur-
roundings. You pay little attention to the houses, the fi elds, and the 
hills that you routinely pass. To break out of this autopilot mode, say 
to yourself that you will look for a house that you have never noticed 
before or a part of the topography that you have never examined. 
By activating your perceptual capacities and the executive control 
center of your frontal lobes, you can wake up and transform an 
experience you have taken for granted into one that is rich and mul-
tidimensional. The more you feed your brain with this attentional 
shift, the more it becomes your way of being present in the world.