Most people think innovation is a talent. Sorry friends, it’s not!
Innovation is the result of a trained brain.
The biggest roadblock to innovation is that most of us spend our days running on autopilot: reacting, scrolling, responding, repeating. We get efficient… but not necessarily thoughtful. Fast… but not always discerning.
And in leadership, parenting, relationships, and business, the leaders with the biggest impact are rarely the ones who react the fastest. They’re the ones who can slow down, think deeper, and choose better. That is, they are the ones who can discern.
Two Modes - One Brain
Psychologist Daniel Kahneman made famous the idea that our brains function in two modes, or systems.
System 1 is fast, efficient, automatic, and reactive. System 1 allows you to finish someone else’s sentence for them, to have a response before you’ve heard the whole problem, and to slam on the brakes to avoid an accident.
System 2 is slow, relational, focused, and analytical. In System 2, your brain can solve complex problems, think critically, notice patterns, and INNOVATE.
The challenge? Your brain prefers to live in System 1 because it burns less energy. System 2 has to be invited to the party!
So, if you want deeper thinking, stronger discernment, and better innovation, you have to intentionally train your brain to flip to manual mode.
Flipping to Manual Mode
Due to the urgency of life, most people never train their brains to slow down. Here’s something to remember:
SPEED ERASES SPACE. INNOVATION REQUIRES SPACE. THEREFORE, SPEED ERASES INNOVATION!
The good news is that you don’t need a neuroscience lab to train your brain to flip to manual mode. You just need intentional friction. To that end, here are several activities that will invite your brain to be more innovative.
MENTAL STRETCHING
These activities force your brain to work harder than normal:
- Count backwards from 100 by 7s
- Multiply a two-digit number in your head
- Calculate your tip without your phone
- Speel your full name backwards
- Name 10 animals that start with “S”
- Recall your exact schedule one week ago
- List 10 uses for a paperclip
- Solve Sudoku, crosswords, chess puzzles, or logic games.
PATTERN INTERRUPTIONS
These interruptions force awareness instead of automaticity.
- Sit in a different chair at a meeting
- Take an unfamiliar route home
- Write with your non-dominate hand
- Delay a notification response by 10 seconds
- Brush your teeth with your opposite hand
- Ask before you pick up your phone: “Why am I reaching for this?”
OBSERVATIONAL TRAINING
Most people don’t notice nearly as much as they think they do. Noticing engages System 2.
- Count the right angles in the room
- Identify every distinct sound for 30 seconds
- Recall the layout of the room you were in yesterday
- Close your eyes and picture every item on your desk
- Notice everything red around you
COORDINATION CHALLENGES
Strengthening mental flexibility can increase your ability to stay mentally engaged under pressure. Here are some ways to do that:
- Pat your head while rubbing your stomach
- Walk while reciting the alphabet backwards
- Wind with your non-dominant eye while snapping with your dominant hand
- Practice tongue twisters
- Do a body scan
The Real Goal ISN'T Mental Fitness
It’s better choices, better timing, and better leadership. In a world addicted to speed, the leaders who win long-term are the ones who can pause long enough to become innovative.
Because innovation rarely comes from autopilot. It comes from curiosity, from noticing patterns that others miss, and from questioning assumptions. Innovation requires us to slow down long enough to connect ideas that most people rush past.
The most innovative leaders aren’t always the smartest people in the room, they’re just the ones most willing to think differently, challenge defaults, and engage deeply instead of reacting quickly.
So, every time you interrupt System 1, every time you slow down, every time you invite your brain into manual mode, you are training yourself to lead with greater clarity, greater influence, and greater innovation.
Don’t just think faster – choose better!
