A very short guide to the most creative part of your brain

Want to have more “aha!” moments and free up your brain to think more creatively? Of course you do. The key is to tap into your brain’s built-in system for free-association and mind-wandering. But to do that, you need to know how that system operates. So here’s a quick primer. Meet your mind’s “default network” We all have the capacity for creative inspiration simply by being human. It doesn’t matter whether you’re a highly logical or a highly empathetic person (and maybe you’re both!)–there’s still a natural “seesaw” effect at work in your brain. At one end are traits and qualities like being results-driven, focused, and analytical, while at the other are your social and communication skills as well as your empathy. Related: How to be less creative at work (and why you sometimes should) Each end of this spectrum reflects one of two cognitive networks that operate like counterweights in your brain. The task-focused “control network” helps you execute on clear goals, while the “default network” is associated with mind-wandering and spacing out. And it probably won’t surprise you to learn that it’s the default network that’s primarily responsible for creativity. These two networks bookend all the systems and sub-networks in between that together give rise to cognition. When the seesaw is unequally weighted, overall brain agility tends to suffer. The default network is something we’ve recently learned more about. Researchers now know that even while we aren’t engaged in a task or consciously focused on a specific topic, the entire brain remains busy–not just the control network. The default network (sometimes called the “task-negative network”) helps us free-associate and think in abstract terms all the while. This actually makes a lot of sense; a brain that’s functioning with real agility can integrate logic with creativity, intuition, and […]

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