đź“Ť The end of the year's first quarter is typically a time for companies—and their founders—to take stock of what has been accomplished so far. So for public companies, we huddle over investor calls and try to understand performance. For private companies, we hope and pray a media publication somehow finds their numbers and shares them with us. 

Yet, as far as stocktaking goes, metrics like Gross Merchandise Value (GMV), net income, operational profits, and margins are pretty easy to track. What can be difficult to measure is your mental wellness and performance and how we can improve these. 

🎯 For this month’s podcast, Adam Wakefield speaks to Dr Kirti Ranchod, a clinical neurologist and the founder of memorability.co. The conversation focuses on brain health, mental wellness, and understanding that, much like everything else in life, you can learn skills to improve your mental wellness. 

What specific brain skills can we consider useful, especially for entrepreneurs looking to improve performance? For Dr. Ranchod, there are 8 brain skills, and 4 of those matter the most to founders: creativity, empathy, focus, and calm. 

For calmness, for instance, a lot of people practice meditation or mindfulness so that they learn to stay even in tough situations. And before you get super cynical, some science shows that the brain can change in response to the things we do or to our external environment. 

Big takeaway: For instance, Dr Ranchod says that studies have shown that when you feel loved and supported, a specific gene is switched on that supports the development of memory. Those genes change the brain's physical structure some science shows and can reduce the possibility of dementia. 

Bonus: Want to improve your mental well-being? 3 easy things to do: find a practice that makes you calm, don’t skimp on your sleep, and pay attention to your diet. 

That’s enough spoilers for one episode. Listen and tell us what you found the most impactful in this episode! - Olumuyiwa (Contributor and Writer, African Pre-seed Podcast).

đź’ˇ Top 5 insights unpacked in the episode:

  • Brain and mental health and its impact on founders [07:03]
  • Efficiently maximizing the brain's capabilities [09:24]
  • Creating an environment that promotes health and mental wellness [16:05]
  • Leveraging community and communication for better wellbeing as a founder [20:19]
  • Mental health at the intersection of running a business [24:43]

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