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How do you become smarter? Well, reading and receiving all eight hours of sleep are pretty obvious solutions to boosting your brain power and improve your awareness of the world around you. However, what are some unexpected habits and traits that are actually tied to intelligence, success, and better decision-making? Here are 12 random-yet-simple tricks that can make you smarter, according to science.
1. Writing in a journal
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Though the last thing most people want to do at the end of a long day is write about their long day, this reflective exercise actually stimulates your creativity and analysis skills. Mike Xie, a research associate at Bayside Biosciences, agrees, and urges people to “write about what you’ve learned.” Moreover, according to Teresa Amabile and Steven Kramer, co-authors of The Progress Principle, has helped many professionals improve their patience, attention to detail, and personal growth.
2. Unleashing your sarcasm
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Some geniuses think cheeky comments are mean-spirited, but University of Western Ontario found that it’s a sign of a person being smarter since they’re able to assess a situation and point out what’s missing. Sure you can be straight up in conversation, but sarcasm is more fun and takes more mental effort.
3. Drinking coffee
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Coffee drinkers are usually in it for the caffeine to wake up, but there are other benefits too. The caffeine boosts people’s mood and brain thanks to dopamine, according to Germany’s Ruhr University. Your daily cup of joe helps you better process words and make connections.
4. Dancing
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Hitting the dance floor isn’t just good for blowing off steam and burning calories! Research shows dancing rumba, the waltz, and fox trot help increase mental capacity because doing them creates new pathways in the brain. Finally a reason to sign up dancing class!
5. Getting busy in the sheets
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Apparently, sex does a lot of interesting things to your body including your brain. Researchers from University of Maryland found a little sexy time can help with your long-term memory and help lower your risk of dementia. This is all because doing the deed creates neurons.
6. Chewing gum
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This gets a bad rep. Most jobs where you have to speak to customers or clients make it a rule to not chew gum, but they might want to rethink things. Gum chewing has been found to enhance mental performance. Psychologists from St. Lawrence University believe this is because it helps people wake up and focus on what they’re doing. Don’t be ashamed – chew away!
7. Indulging in the bubbly
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If anything, drinking is blamed for making people act in stupid ways; but science has found there could be a positive correlation between intelligence and your fondness for good wine. People who started speaking earlier and had a high academic performance are also the ones who consume more alcohol later in life. But don’t think this means you have free reign, drink responsibly.
8. Checking Facebook
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Many feel guilty for always browsing Facebook, but now we know there’s a good thing that comes from it! The social media platform supposedly helps you exercise those memory muscles because you are consuming so much information at the same time. However, Twitter doesn’t produce similar results because of how fast the feed changes.
9. Being a lefty
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You might have to struggle finding things like scissors and instruments to suit you if you’re left-handed, but there are some upsides. “Over time, when you use one hand to do certain tasks, it becomes hardwired and there is almost a reflex component to using that dominant hand,” explains Allen Sills, M.D., associate professor of neurological surgery at Vanderbilt Medical Center. “When you use your non-dominant hand and you have to activate and engage many different brain regions, it lays down new memories and new wiring.” Researchers also discovered a correlation between lefties and being able to manipulate objects mentally. This is a reason why many of them are great at chess.
10. Don’t be honest and lie
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Honesty tends to be the best policy, but there are some advantages to bending the truth. Recently experts found that children who like to lie have excellent memory when it comes to words, which comes in handy to cover their tracks. Be careful to use your powers for good!
11. Read books, newspapers, magazines — anything you can get your hands on!
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And we don’t need research to back it this one — it’s basically a given. Not only does reading for pleasure allow you to open yourself up to new cultures and perspectives, but it also stimulates your imagination and helps you form new ways of thinking. Moreover, the daily routine of reading increases your vocabulary and overall comprehension of literature. You can’t go wrong!
12. Hit up your local mall
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We’re not kidding! According to Dr. Small, a director at UCLA’s Longevity Center and co-author of The Alzheimer’s Prevention Program, pulling out your wallet from time to time (no overspending here, folks) results in some unexpected brain activity. “You do a lot of mental and physical activities when you go shopping,” he points out. “You’re walking, you’re engaging with people, you’re making calculations. Each of these exercises will stimulate different parts of your brain and provide a cross-training effect.”
So, darlings, how do you get those mind wheels cranking every day? Do you have a special trick to increase your focus, eloquence and memory skills? Tell us in a comment!
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The post Believe It or Not, These 12 Daily Habits Actually Make You Smarter appeared first on Pretty Little Liars.