Vinod is organized and attentive to detail. Every evening, he makes a to-do list for the next day that includes both personal and professional tasks. Being punctual, he estimates how much time various jobs may take and schedules some buffer time for unforeseeable delays. On most days, things go as planned and Vinod is efficient. However, sometimes things go awry, beyond his buffer time. That’s when Vinod gets rattled and ends up doing sub-optimal work. Even if nothing calamitous has happened, Vinod is unable to be productive when his schedule is disrupted. That’s because he lacks cognitive flexibility.
Benefits of cognitive flexibility
In a blog post on BetterUp, Lauren Miller defines cognitive flexibility as our “brain’s ability to adapt to new, changing or unplanned events.” Besides enhancing your efficiency, it also makes you more resilient to the ups and downs of life. Because it allows you to zero in on details while also keeping the broader picture in mind, it is associated with creativity and problem-solving.
Cognitive flexibility enables lifelong learning, aver Barbara Sahakian, Christelle Langley and Victoria Leong in The Conversation. The authors describe multiple benefits of this super skill. It allows us to course- correct and shift gears when our original plan doesn’t go smoothly or backfires. Interestingly, it is “largely independent of IQ” or bookish knowledge. People who exhibit this trait are also more inclined to identify biases in their thinking. The skill of cognitive flexibility has been linked to greater levels of empathy which helps you forge deeper and more meaningful connections with people.
At work, cognitive flexibility can manifest in umpteen ways. After an intense meeting with your boss, you bump into a colleague on the way back to your desk. Are you able to switch off from “meeting mode” to make small talk for a few minutes? In another instance, you are in-charge of a crucial client presentation. You have run through the schedule with your team but on the morning of the event, your key presenter calls in sick. Are you able to fill in for him without getting unduly fazed?
The opposite of cognitive flexibility is cognitive rigidity wherein you get locked into a particular mindset or frame and are unable to maneuver around unexpected changes or challenges. Is it possible for a cognitively rigid person to exhibit more flexibility and thereby grow more adaptable?
Strategies to grow more flexible
Yes, indeed. To grow more cognitively flexible, Miller suggests the following strategies. Start by expanding your comfort zone in “low-stakes” situations. If you take a fixed route to work every day, take a small deviation. Become more empathetic by trying to see problems from the perspectives of others. Talk to them to ensure that you understand their viewpoints. Nip negative thoughts in the bud before they spiral out of control. If you tend to catastrophize, watch out for this fallibility.
Sahakian, Langley and Leong recommend using the tools of cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) to grow more flexible. Suppose you are upset with a colleague, Kala, for not copying you on an important email. You are miffed with Kala as you assume she deliberately omitted you. CBT trains you to first observe and notice these automatic thoughts. It then asks you to consider alternative possibilities? Could Kala have left you out unintentionally? In fact, when you think about it, you realize that Kala has been rather distracted lately. So, instead of accusing Kala of not copying you on purpose, you let her know that you did not receive the email. When she readily proffers a sincere apology, you realize that it was a mistake.
Imagine how different the interaction would have been if you straightaway blamed her for sabotaging your prospects at work? Besides Kala becoming defensive, you would have sabotaged your relationship with her. Pausing, examining your automatic thoughts and reframing them can help you cultivate more robust relationships with colleagues.
Examining the construct of ‘equanimity’ through a fresh lens, Michel Uebel argues in Psyche that this state is linked with cognitive flexibility. Though most people associate equanimity with mindfulness or stillness, Uebel reconceptualizes this construct as a “continual rebalancing.” Rather than viewing it as a state or as a noun, we may think of equanimity as a process that characterizes a “dynamic, flexible consciousness.” Being able to see multiple perspectives affords an element of ‘playfulness’ and aids cognitive flexibility. This conception also explains why having a sense of humour can help us get through stressful periods, both at work and outside, more easily.
About the Author
Aruna Sankaranarayanan is the author of Zero Limits and the co-author of Bee-Witched along with Brinda S. Narayan.