A: Hi ….

B: Hey ….., nice to see you again. Haven’t seen you at yesterday’s training.

A: That’s right. I will tell you why. I went to the most interesting guest lesson ever.

B: You mean the lesson on the brain. Did you go there? I didn’t go because I thought it                        would be boring.

A: Well, it wasn’t boring at all. You can’t imagine how good it was. Don’t you often forget the             name of the person that you have just met?

B: Oh yes, that happens all the time.

A: The tip that was given is that you when you meet someone new and he introduces                        himself: “Hi I am George”, you don’t just say Hi I am ……., but you say: Hi George I am ….”.              Because when you have repeated his name and preferably have said it once or twice during        the conversation, you will remember.

B: I understand, but isn’t it stupid too repeat someone’s name a few times.

A: You can easily do that in a relaxed way. Like when you ask something, you say: “George, do          you like going to the cinema?” or “Would you like a drink George?”

B: You are right, that doesn’t sound weird. Good tip! What else did they tell you? I am getting            interested.

A: They told us that you can change the things that you don’t like about yourself if you want.           Things like laziness …… which bothers all of us.

B: Oh yes, I always leave things till the last moment.

A: So do I. By actually doing something new over and over again, your brain wires new                       pathways that help you do this new thing better and faster.

B: I don’t get it.

A: Let me explain. If you want to change being lazy, you start by doing something really small,         that you wouldn’t normally do, but is in the direction of getting that task done, you will start         creating those new precious neural pathways. So if you have been postponing organizing             your desk, just take one paper and put in its right place. Or, you can go even smaller. Look at       one piece of paper and decide where to put it: Trash? Right cabinet? Another room? Give it to       someone? You don’t actually need to clean up that paper; you only need to decide what you         need to do with it.

    That’s how small you can start. And yet, those neural pathways are still being built. Gradually,       you will transform yourself from someone who leaves everything to the last minute to an in-       the-moment action taker.

B: Wow, could it really be that easy?

A: Of course it won’t change overnight. You have to repeat the new action time and time again.

B: Last week I heard that the more you use your brain, the better it’s going to perform for you.         For example, learning a new instrument improves your skill of translating something you see       (sheet music) to something you actually do (playing the instrument).

     Learning a new language exposes your brain to a different way of thinking, a different way of      expressing yourself.

    You can even literally take it a step further, and learn how to dance. Studies indicate that                learning to dance helps seniors avoid Alzheimer’s. Not bad, huh?

A: That is exactly what they told us yesterday too.

B: It is a pity that I missed it, but I am glad that you told me all about it.

A: Right, let’s go and practise English :)