The Tetris Effect

Researchers paid students to play Tetris for three days. I wish that was an offer being made when I was at university! After three days students reported that they continued thinking about Tetris in different situations …

• Making patterns out of the bricks on a wall
• Noticing the shapes the cereal boxes made in the supermarket and looking for where they could drop to fill spaces on the shelf below
• Continuing to see falling shapes when they closed their eyes to sleep

… that sort of thing.

I remember the same sort of effect when as a teenager I worked on a farm in Cornwall pulling up broccoli seedlings for replanting. Climbing into bed and all I could see was rows of broccoli.

The thing is, we all suffer from this effect all the time without realising it. Whatever we do regularly forms a pattern, and this pattern of thought becomes easier to think than a brand new pattern. Then, as we go about our lives, we take the easy route and continue to think in similar ways.

Therefore people who work in finance become very sensitive to small mistakes – great for work, terrible for relationships.
Leaders learn look at things strategically – great when planning a new project, terrible when planning an evening out.
Trainers learn to act – great when needing to deliver even though you’re feeling lousy, not so good when your partner wonders why they never seem to see ‘the real you’.
What do you do every day that might have become a pattern of thought?
We all have strengths and blind spots created by our routines, what are yours?

If you’d like to chat about the implications of this for you then get in touch and we’ll organise a coaching call. Justin@Kaizen-training.com

Posted Wednesday, June 29th, 2011 in Brain Friendly Learning, Changing, Coaching, Communication Skills, Continuous Improvement, Entrepreneurship, Facilitation, Kaizen, Leadership, Leading, Neuroscience/Psychology, Personal Development, Personal Resilience, Sales, Influencing, Negotiating, Topical Debate. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.