#critical ability

ONE MORE TIME: Our brains don’t multitask. At least, not in the way we’d hope they do.

You see, we have a reservoir of creative and critical ability that’s diminished with each task we undertake. Each one.

In psychology, the amount of mental effort we undertake in any given moment is called Cognitive Load.

So.

For those of us who have to assess our work in various ways, who should and do consider it from many angles — anywhere on a spectrum from pure emotion to pure analysis, from big picture to exquisite detail — we ensure our vision and our efforts by undertaking each one in sequence. For example, over in my neck of the woods, I wouldn’t spell check graphics at the same time I’m reviewing a show’s presence. Or, if I’m perfecting color grade, I mute the sound. Or, if I’m concerned with the sound mix, I’ll kill the video.

And so on.

One kind of mental effort at a time.

Because our brains don’t multitask.

Our brains don’t multitask. At least, not in the way we hope they do.

In our dreams, we can do multiple things at the same time with all the attention and prowess as if we were doing each of them on its own.

In reality, we operate out of a fixed reservoir of creative and critical ability, a reservoir that operates at full power, that can only operate at full power when we take care of our brains.

That’s a sleep and diet and lifestyle and healthy habits thing, by the way.

So no.

It don’t come easy. And it’s definitely not natural to the way we live our lives... when we live them on automatic.

FYI then... here’s a little taste of what goes into the care and feeding of a fully healthy brain:

And here’s a couple more tips ‘cause yeah.

I read a ton. I write a ton. And I’ve been engaged in music since piano lessons when I was a kid. To the point where I compose for broadcast and streaming media.

Hopefully it’s clear: what happens outside the edit suite, recording studio, what happens outside your creative space, your desk, the table, the floor... what happens outside of your shop, your office, that place where you’re on the job...

What happens outside that space is what happens before that space. What happens before we let our creative energies loose.

It fuels our creative ability.

It primes our creative ability.

And believe me.

What happens before stepping into that creative space prepares you, prepares me, prepares us...

Not only for creative success, something that earns enthusiastic client approval, or something that elicits our own pride.

But something that surprises us in that I didn’t know I could do THAT —

Kind of way.

… a dislike button would come in very handy.

– Niebla

Note As we all know, the only form of appreciation provided in social media is praise, be it as a thumbs up button or a heart icon.

I sometimes wonder whether this hasn’t led to a minimization of…