Maximum Brainpower Quotes

“The brain does not want the body to expend its resources unless we have a reasonable chance of success. Our physical strength is not accessible to us if the brain does not believe in the outcome, because the worst possible thing for humans to do is to expend all of our resources and fail. If we do not believe we can make it, we will not get the resources we need to make it. The moment we believe, the gates are opened, and a flood of energy is unleashed. Both hope and despair are self-fulfilling prophecies.”
― Shlomo Breznitz, Maximum Brainpower: Challenging the Brain for Health and Wisdom

“Just about everything we choose to do can direct our cognition up or down. The effect may be negligible or significant, but it all adds up. The more challenging choices we make, and the longer we do them, the greater the benefit—usually by a considerable amount. It does not really matter whether we work primarily with people, things, or data. What matters is whether the work is challenging or routine. Schaie shows that we need to remain engaged. As is implied in his studies and demonstrated in others, a variety of stimulation matters a great deal to our brainpower.”
― Shlomo Breznitz, Maximum Brainpower: Challenging the Brain for Health and Wisdom

“Our cognitive skills are not fixed. At all ages the brain has the ability to respond to new information and new stimuli. Our intellectual abilities are a combination of our inherent genetic gifts and the lifelong consequences of all of the decisions we make that either positively or negatively contribute to our cognitive fitness.”
― Shlomo Breznitz, Maximum Brainpower: Challenging the Brain for Health and Wisdom

“If we all have a sufficiently stimulating environment, then our inherent abilities—our genetic gifts—will dominate in the unfolding of our lives. If we lack a sufficiently stimulating environment, our cognitive gifts never have the chance to blossom.”
― Shlomo Breznitz, Maximum Brainpower: Challenging the Brain for Health and Wisdom