Studying and Test-taking: Giving It Your Best Shot
By Frank Lawlis, Ph.D.
There are several scientific ways to increase your intellectual capacity in a short period of time.
These have been used successfully by students of all ranges of talents and skills, but especially for those with exceptional capacities.
Breathing patterns are critical for higher achievement because of the need for oxygen fuel to the brain.
Most people tend to hold their breath when confronting a problem, which is the wrong thing to do because it robs your brain of thinking power.
You can increase your brain’s fuel by breathing in long breaths.
The best pattern for memory and concentration is to breathe in for a count of five (through your nose), hold it for a count of four, and exhale for a count of six.
This will maximize the fuel for the brain to operate most effectively.
There are other important fuel sources as well.
Research has shown that a high-protein breakfast is essential to high performance.
The best specific research used boiled eggs; college students who ate two eggs achieved a 10-29 percent improvement on their tests.
Other high-protein foods are cheese, peanut butter and fish.
Some very interesting research shows that exposure to a blue light before a test-taking situation has a very positive influence on performance, even with animals.
Go down to your hardware store and get a blue 25-watt light bulb and feed your brain some blue frequencies.
Other advice would be to chew sugarless gum during the test or study session — if it’s allowed, of course.
The research is clear that the act of chewing actually improves your memory and lowers your anxiety.
These are some easy things that perk up your brain behaviorally, but the biggest foe to smart thinking is anxiety.
When you get anxious, it helps to focus on the process of problem-solving and not on the outcome.
We tend to worry too much about the results of our performances, and these doubts and fears simply cut your thinking power in half.
Stop that internal dialogue of self-criticism and allow your full potential to blossom!
Finally, intellectual performance is based on allowing your brain to do what it does best — solve problems.
Remember that you are truly capable of doing anything you set out to do, if you enjoy the act of participating.
Your brain enjoys fun, so play with problems and look for the many different ways of reaching solutions...
Dr. Lawlis is American Mensa’s Supervisory Psychologist.
He has counseled potential graduate students with consistent success and is now using these same principles to help students succeed in medical school.
Look for more information on this topic in his latest book "The IQ Answer.”