Is Neurofeedback the New Smart Weapon for Business Productivity?

The Great Speedup has Sped Up. The so-called Great Speedup is not a new game app for your iPhone. And it does not, (unfortunately) describe the state of the current global economy…at least not in the way you might think. The Great Speedup is the economic phenomenon in which companies are attempting to squeeze more and more production out of fewer and fewer workers. And the strain is starting to show.

You can actually watch an entertaining representation of The Speedup on YouTube. Remember the infamous “Chocolate Scene” from I Love Lucy? It’s where Lucy and Ethel attempt to package chocolates as they roll down the “assembly line”. But then the line speeds up, Lucy and Ethel can’t keep up and comedy ensues. Similarly, the current American workforce, with few job options available, is struggling to keep pace with The Speedup. Of course, there’s nothing funny about the alternative (unemployment), so workers reluctantly take on more responsibility at the expense of less personal time.

The current economic climate is also putting the screws to management, which is under tremendous pressure to get more done with fewer warm bodies. Given that there are only so many hours in a day, how can companies expect to make butter with a toothpick? For workers, how can they spend more time doing things they actually want to do and not be hermetically glued to their desks? Neurofeedback may just be the new smart weapon both management and labor have been craving in this stagnant economy.

Neurofeedback brain training, as it’s known, is a noninvasive means of getting the most out of the most basic human resource: the brain. Regular training with neurofeedback software can help increase cognitive performance and focus. It can make the most of your gray matter without physically changing anything. That means, everyone gets more done in less time. But how does that work?

Human efficiency literally starts in your head. Executing a work assignment isn’t just about skill; it’s also about the efficiency with which your neural resources are applied to solving a problem. In particular, Dynamical Neurofeedback^® systems like NeurOptimal^®, prompt the brain to self-correct and seek out efficiencies best suited for each individual brain. Problems can get solved more quickly, multi-tasking can become less overwhelming and everyone can start planning those weekend getaways again.

The other factor behind work productivity starts in bed. (Yes, you read that right.) When workers are overloaded with tasks, fatigue becomes a huge factor. We’ve all experienced the vicious cycle of exhaustion: you get so overtired that you can’t fall asleep, or worse yet wake up at 3AM and stare at the ceiling. Then that shallow, disruptive sleep makes you even more tired and less able to sleep. Neurofeedback can greatly improve the depth and quality of your sleep. That’s important because, if you can’t add extra sleep hours, brain training with neurofeedback can help maximize the down time you DO have. By vastly improving the quality of your rest, neurofeedback training can lift the cognitive fog of fatigue.

Along with rest, workers are more productive when their brains are more resilient. This is especially important in an economy where no one gets the luxury of focusing on one task at a time. When your day starts with a presentation, continues with data analysis and then ends with answering a hundred email queries – those are all very different types of cognitive tasks. Brain training with neurofeedback is thought to help increase neural plasticity, which is key to the brain’s ability to jump from one task to the next quickly and easily. With the time you save, you might even have a minute to eat out somewhere instead of inhaling that chicken sandwich at your desk in-between phone calls.

Improved rest, better task juggling and greater productivity all make for a happier workers, happier managers and ultimately, more competitive companies. So, neurofeedback brain training potentially offers something for everyone: managers can meet their mandate to wring more out of less and workers can spend more time with their families and hobbies. The result is not just a better quality of work, but a better quality of life. And most importantly for companies, neurofeedback can be the pathway to significant competitive advantage. After all, enterprises that make the most of their most precious resources – their human resources – will quickly pull out in front of The Great Speedup.

So is neurofeedback the ultimate smart weapon for ratcheting up business productivity? Maybe your competitors are using a neurofeedback system at their workplace and already know the answer to that question.