Most of us are productivity junkies. We pride ourselves on how much we accomplish and how long we maintain our focus.

But our brains know better. Sooner or later, they start to wander. To the tune of nearly half our waking hours.

Moshe Bar, cognitive scientist and author of the book, Mindwandering: How Your Constant Mental Drift Can Improve Your Mood and Boost Creativity, argues that we need these daydreams. They promote connections that inform our sense of self, lift our mood and stimulate creativity. Bar also believes the better we understand how mind wandering works, the more effective we’ll be at accessing it when we need it most.

This is a mind-expanding book. It’ll give you a peek into the thought process of a brilliant cognitive scientist and a new appreciation for what you may have thought of as an annoying mental habit.

Episode Links

Raising the Bar: The Brain Scientist Who Studies the Past to Predict the Future

Think Less, Think Better by Moshe Bar

Karl Popper

Jon Kabat-Zinn

Reculturing by Melissa Daimler

The Team

Learn more about host, Gayle Allen, and producer, Rob Mancabelli, here.

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CM 214: Moshe Bar On Our Creative Brains

Curious Minds at Work