Neuroscience: achieving a cognitive edge

Natalie Alesi at iManage explains why business leaders need to leverage neuroscience for better business outcomes

 

In today’s ever-evolving business landscape, the difference between success and stagnation often hinges on the ability to think differently, adapt swiftly, and make sound decisions under pressure. 

 

While business leaders have long relied on experience and data to inform their approach, neuroscience offers another valuable tool that they can add to their toolkit. Forward-looking executives are now discovering that understanding the brain’s inner workings offers a powerful advantage that can sharpen strategy, drive innovation and improve business outcomes, giving them a cognitive edge.

 

 

Hidden brain biases create mental ruts

It’s helpful here to understand a bit about how the brain works, how we process information, and how we act upon it.

 

Our past experiences, both in our personal life as well as our professional life, play a role in how our brain is wired, and this “wiring” shapes how we perceive the world and absorb new information.

 

A field of grass provides a useful analogy for this process. When you walk through a field of grass for the first time, it forms a slight pathway. The more you walk that same pathway, the more heavily defined it becomes.

 

Experiences imprint themselves on the brain in a similar fashion; and after decades of both positive and negative experiences, our brains are riddled with these metaphorical “pathways through the grass”, some of which are deeply ingrained.

 

That in itself isn’t a bad thing, but what it does mean is that when we make decisions, we’re often making them in an unconscious way that is primarily guided by the pathways that are already present in our brains.

 

For example, have you had negative experiences with a particular colleague or department in the past? You might automatically dismiss their business ideas without fully considering them or weighing the pros and cons. Likewise, if you’ve had success with a particular business strategy or approach, you might be biased towards a similar approach in the future, even if other approaches might be just as effective.

 

The easiest way to make decisions is to let our thoughts automatically follow existing pathways. Making decisions from a place of innovation, however, requires us to disrupt this process so that we can break free of those limitations. 

 

 

The power of the pause

One simple technique to prompt this kind of creative decision-making is to create deliberate pauses in the discussion during any group decision-making.

 

If a person pauses to explain their thought pattern and why they’re thinking a certain way, it can help catch some of the underlying biases in real time. Essentially, it forces people to think about why they’ve come to the conclusion they have, or why they’re making the recommendation that they’re putting forth, instead of letting their brain go on autopilot.

 

We have the concept of neuroplasticity to thank for this effect. Essentially, pausing gives us enough time to create new neural pathways – to forge new paths through the metaphorical grass, rather than being instinctively drawn down the paths that are already there.

 

 

Getting in sync

Another element of neuroscience that can be deployed – either individually or in a group setting – is to tap into something called heart-brain coherence.

 

As research by the HeartMath Institute has shown, your heart has approximately 40,000 neurons, making it something of a miniature brain. When the heart and the brain are in a coherent state, which can be induced by simple breathing exercises, the heart and the brain synchronise. This creates a state of calm, clarity, and focus. This mental/emotional state is critical for anyone making a big business decision. 

 

While heart-brain coherence is impactful at an individual level, where it really shines is in a group setting. Research shows that it palpably transforms the social dynamics in the room, removing pressure and creating a sense of alignment among the participants.

 

 

Visualise the future

Visualisation represents another powerful tool that teams can take advantage of to aid decision-making and drive better outcomes.

 

You’re likely aware that elite athletes often visualise successful outcomes before they go out to compete: the tennis player visualises herself serving up an ace, the archer visualises himself hitting the bullseye, and so on. Essentially, they’re doing a dry run of their desired future. This starts rewiring the brain and blazing new “paths through the grass” based on a future state rather than the past.

 

Organisations can also benefit from visualising a successful future state, particularly when undertaking long-term strategic planning or envisioning where they want the organisation to be in several years.

 

Amazon has adopted this principle in its future press release strategy. Instead of starting with a product idea and figuring out how to sell it, Amazon teams begin by writing a press release as if the product already exists and has succeeded. This imagined announcement serves as the blueprint for development, encouraging bold thinking while aligning the team toward the desired outcome.

 

 

Get the edge

Neuroscience needn’t be relegated to esoteric corners of academia and medicine. By incorporating evidence-based frameworks such as deliberate pauses, heart-brain coherence, and cognitive rehearsal/visualisation into the boardroom, business leaders can consciously rewire their thinking and approach challenges with greater clarity and flexibility. 

 

In doing so, they can unlock untapped potential, mitigate cognitive biases, and ultimately achieve the superior business results they seek. 

 

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Natalie Alesi is Global Senior Director of Customer Success at iManage

 

Main image courtesy of iStockPhoto.com and metamorworks