Thinking More Clearly with Transient Hypofrontality feat. Scott Salsman
I get my best work done in the shower. Maybe for you it’s while you’re driving, on a long run, or doing the dishes. There’s actually a term for this – transient hypofrontality which essentially means that for a while, under certain conditions (like taking a shower), the focused thinking part of our brain gets a rest which allows other parts and functions to become more dominant.
So how can you use this phenomenon to be a better leader?
Join me and Scott Salsman of the Leadership Mindset Institute (powered by Coffee on Leadership) to find out how!
On this episode you’ll hear…
What transient hypofrontality is, how it works, and the ways in which you’ve probably experienced it already
Why a performance mindset should be tethered with leadership to become more aware and productive
Tips to create an environment of transient hypofrontality and create a flow state on an individual and team level
Ready for more?
Listen in:
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** This is a raw, unedited transcript
Chaili Trentham 00:00
We're gonna just kick it off with transient hypofrontality. Because ever since you taught me what this word means it pops up all the time. I don't know if I'm getting served articles within it. Well, and then the when I'm reading an audio book. What is that audio book? I'm reading stealing fire stealing fire. Yeah, the only fire, which you knew about and transient hypofrontality came up in chapter two. And I was like, this is Scott's jam. So like, yeah, lay it out there. Tell me tell listeners what transient hypofrontality is because they likely know what it is because they've experienced it. But they don't know that word. And then we'll teach them how to like harness it.
00:44
Yeah, for sure. So transient hypofrontality is a crazy word. It's actually a really simple word. Right? So we'll we'll break it down and then maybe talk about, yeah, application, what it is and how it works. So transient hypofrontality. Transient means temporary, right? Not permanent. Hypo is the opposite of hyper. So less or slow, right? Then hypothermia, right? I don't have enough heat. So we have temporary, and then slow. And then frontality. So frontality specifically talks about or is focused on your prefrontal cortex in your brain. So prefrontal cortex is where a lot of the system thinking, your orderly thinking, analytical thinking, sequential, right? All that happens in the prefrontal cortex, some decision making happens there as well. So we've smashed all together, we have a temporary slowed down, decision making analytical process in our brain. So why is that good? Well, it's good sometimes because it allows our brain to slow down, it slows down, the inner critic slows down the inner voice often frees up space for us to think clearly, freely more creatively. Before we get too far, like you said, most people have experienced this, right? Yes, most people have heard of runner's high. Or you zone out or you go on a jog and you kind of forget where you are, you're kind of moving, you don't remember the last five songs that are in your headphones. Or you're going for a drive, right? And then 20 Miles pass and you're like, Oh, I'm still on the road and still safe. But I don't really remember what was on the radio, or what signs I passed or what cars I passed. Or you're in the shower, right?
Chaili Trentham 02:34
That's me. I was like, Yeah, are you gonna use my
02:37
house? I will use the shower example. Yeah. Are you in the shower? Right? And you've solved all the world's problems? By the time you weren't done, right? Yes. So time passes, funny. And transient hypofrontality. That's kind of a and we'll talk about how that connects to flow state in a little bit. But that is a core component of it, right? Time passes, funny, you are thinking more freely, you're not thinking as analytically. And it allows you to kind of explore some parts of your brain that you don't normally get into. And most people have experienced this just not didn't necessarily have the language to put it all together. And this is transient hypofrontality. Right.
Chaili Trentham 03:12
Right. I mean, that's when he first said the word to me, I was like, say that again, go extra slow. What and I like couldn't get it right for the time. But I knew exactly what you were talking about. And that's right, like the shower example. That's where I was like, Oh, my goodness, I don't know if I'm fully ready to admit this on the podcast. But here I go. I have been, my kids are at school for like the morning. And so I've been like showering middle of the day, because truly, that is where I do my best thinking. And I try to create time for thinking in my work. And it seems so weird, but it's like in my calendar to like, take a shower today, in the middle of the day, so that I can think through a problem that I need to solve or a connection to the research that I've been trying to make, but like can't get it because I think most clearly in that space. And that's where you were like that's because you're taking yourself into a different area where you can slow down and allow like your prefrontal cortex to do the work. And that makes sense to me.
04:13
Yeah, for sure. So actually, I'll hit on it now is gonna touch on at the end, but what you just described, right, you put it in your calendar to do this. So okay, yeah. So here we go. So this is this is, I will, I will go back because I want to think but for the application, because you brought it up, I think it's a perfect time. There's a caveat to transient hypofrontality in flow state, is you can't create it, but you can create conditions for it to be conducive. So what you're doing is you're actually creating transient hypofrontality you're creating flow state, you're creating a condition that you know, leads to greater success that you're going to be able to transmit hypofrontality right. So every time I go on a run, or for me, it's driving a car I can I think the best when I'm driving, so I've done it before interviews, I've gotten the car and I've just, obviously safely but we're just driving. Right, right. And I feel like I can think the most clearly all the stuff that's in my brain goes away, and I can come back and I can sit down, and I feel like I'm really prepared and ready to tackle whatever I have. So we're creating conditions, every time I drive a car doesn't mean that I'm gonna be thinking this way. And for you, you know, every time, you know, you're not solving a giant problem every time you take a shower, right, right. But there are times where you need to take a shower. Sure, right. And sometimes I just need to go to the grocery store, or whatever it is, right? And that's totally fine. But we're creating conditions for these spaces to be conducive. And that's, that's one of the kind of caveats with this is, you know, when I first learned about this, I was like, I'm just gonna go ride my bike everywhere, and I'm gonna be ultra productive, because in flow state, right, there's research that suggests people are 500% more productive. Yes, when you're in flow state, it's absurd, right? That's basically, I can work Monday and not work the rest of the week and be just as productive as everybody else. If you're in flow state,
Chaili Trentham 06:02
right? Well, and this is why, and I know you're more. But this is why when we talk about performance mindset, tethered with leadership, it matters. Because when we teach these moments of how to create the right conditions, as a leader who needs to be performing at a really high level, we can teach the little steps to get to the greater outcome, right, which is the 500% more productive, which is the making subconscious connections that you wouldn't have normally made, doing something that you should do anyways, like we should, we should find flow state, often, if we can create conditions for it, because we are best in that state, right. And we like feel connected to our work and our creativity and the things that fill us up in those same moments. And so it's this weird, like, whole symbiotic system of developing ourselves as a leader is understanding this kind of stuff and why it matters. Truly, I really feel that way.
07:03
Definitely, right. It's creating those accessible points to allow you to succeed and perform under pressure and perform and lead. Well, and a lot of leadership is under pressure, and a lot of situations, right, leading through crisis leading through adversity leading through challenge, and being able to access these moments of performance that allow you to lead well, is is really important.
Chaili Trentham 07:26
Right? Especially after a year like the one we just came out of where leaders are consistently under pressure and in crisis mode with a lot of their work. For sure.
07:35
Definitely. Definitely. Yeah. So how to access it right? Well, we kind of hit on it a little bit. But I'll give you one kind of easier example. So there's a TED talk on it. And I'm going to mispronounce his name. So I feel really bad. But Dr. Arnie Dietrich is the one that kind of coined the term, transient hypofrontality. But through his research, he showed that the most accessible way to do this is through exercise, because your brain does this process called down regulation, where when your heart is pumping, your brain is more concerned about making regulating your heart rate and regulating your muscles. But not necessarily worried about the spreadsheet you were working at half hour ago, you know, their, their brain is focused on more important things in the moment and in the present. So exercise is a really great way to enter transient hypofrontality. So that's yoga, stretching, going for a walk, you know, whatever ability level you have, moving your body in some capacity is an easier access point into into this state, because your brain actually has this process called downregulation work puts more emphasis on the physical component instead of the analytical component. And that's when you can enter this space.
Chaili Trentham 08:55
Oh, that's interesting. I guess it's almost like that's our most primitive response, right? Like the, even the fear response of like fight or flight. Like your physical body takes over and like flees before you have time to think about a threat. Right? And that's like a primitive response. And so it almost seems like that, like, your body puts focus on the physical.
09:18
Absolutely. I mean, your brain is very, very old, very obvious. And the dangers we're facing today are not the same things that we were facing 2000 years ago. So you're right, there's it's a primitive response to the physical component is more important than the work that I was doing an hour, half hour or whatever it was, yeah. Because I need to keep my body alive and healthy and well, and and that's what takes over in that in that state.
Chaili Trentham 09:46
That's wild. Okay. So the suggestions for leaders would be to create the right conditions for it, and know what your own condition is, because it could be different for people. Right, and then factor in like a physical component?
10:03
Yeah, yeah, and just try stuff, try things go for a walk, if you can't figure something out, right, just go stretch, if you can't figure something out, it feels counterproductive, because we're not sitting there grinding through that process. Like, if I sit this computer long enough, I'm gonna have the solution. It doesn't work that way. It doesn't work that way, efficiently or effectively most of the time. So that that 20 minute break to go stretch, or go run or take a shower or whatever it might be, you know, it might actually save you a lot of time in the long run. Because you can come back more refreshed, more clear in thought to actually solve that. And you might solve the problem actually doing the activity that you think is going to be wasting time. So
Chaili Trentham 10:41
yeah, well, and I think for leaders to this is when I always say like leaders right now who are leading across zoom screens have an opportunity to reset the room like they are allowed to call the timeout. There's even something where you're getting stuck as a team. And so I think this is even something as a leader that you can help facilitate with others is be like, Okay, we're calling a five minute timeout. Everyone, turn off your zoom screens, mute yourself, like go walk around your house, or five minutes or do 20 Jumping jacks or, you know, jump up and down, even throw in a song and have a mini dance party. Like that could be a way to even help encourage others when you're getting stuck in team scenarios.
11:24
Definitely, yeah, I love that. That's a Yeah, that's a great way to do that with teams for sure.
Chaili Trentham 11:29
Yeah, it's again, we can't create the conditions like the perfect can conditions for transient hypofrontality but we can recognize that like little tweaks in our rhythms with within the workplace can also happen. Okay.