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The human mind is an incredibly powerful thing. Look at the world around you for a moment and think about how, if you were to step back ten years, or fifty, or a century, how much of what you see today has been innovated by human developers. When harnessed to a task within its wheelhouse, the brain is capable of moving mountains – in some cases, literally. While it takes hands and physical strength to build, it takes a brain to plan those projects.

Just like the human body and its physical power, the mind can, however, become blunted by other factors. Overuse, underuse, lack of fuel and other influences can result in you finding normally simple tasks to be bewildering.

​It can be enough to make you question whether you are experiencing cognitive decline but, more usually, the explanation is a lot simpler – and sharpening up your mind can be a fairly straightforward endeavor.

Sleep is essential for your mental acuity
Those of us who have worked to deadlines – in our jobs and on school or college courses – will be familiar with the frenzied burst of activity that comes as the red letter day approaches. The concept of pulling an all-nighter has become so pervasive that it’s a trope in films and TV shows. The truth is that “cramming” is ineffective. If you’re not sleeping or getting the rest that your mind needs, you’ll forget more than you ever crammed in. Sleep is, perhaps, the single most important contributor to your mental sharpness.

If you use stimulants, use them sparingly
We’ve all been in a situation where we need to be at our best, but an untimely burst of insomnia has left us sluggish and nervous for the task ahead. For many of us, the straightforward solution is to down cup after cup of coffee, but this isn’t an efficient solution. For one thing, excess caffeine – or any stimulant – will send your anxiety skyrocketing. Additionally, caffeine doesn’t add alertness; it borrows it from the future. While you may gain temporarily from a coffee buzz, you will end up paying it back. With interest.

A calm mind is a sharp mind
You will make better decisions, and be more equipped to solve problems, when you are at your calmest. Distractions will fall away and you can be more switched-on. Whether you hit up a CBD online store or take a power nap to achieve it (or, ideally, both), this absence of mental clutter is invaluable to keeping your brain working smoothly. Meditation is another beneficial approach that can make a big difference, so work on introducing some calm into your mind, and you’ll see the benefits in terms of results.

It’s all too easy for our minds to become swamped with the noise of everyday life and stress, and when this happens we start to make poor decisions. Taking the time to let our minds breathe, and finding ways to keep them sharp, is essential for mental and emotional health.