Unlocking Brain Health: Habits of Successful People

What most people get wrong about brain health

Most people wait until something feels “off” before they think about brain health.

This video flips that idea on its head. The central claim is uncomfortable but motivating: a huge share of people are unknowingly sabotaging their brain health every day, not through one dramatic mistake, but through small defaults that compound.

The unique angle here is performance-focused. Brain health is framed as a competitive edge, the kind that shows up in focus, memory, decision-making, emotional control, and the ability to follow through. The point is not to chase perfection. It is to stop leaking cognitive energy through predictable habits you can change.

What’s also practical about this approach is that it is not presented as “one weird trick.” It is seven daily habits that successful people treat as foundations. Common sense, yes, but “common sense is not common practice.”

Did you know? A large body of research links lifestyle patterns, including sleep, physical activity, nutrition, and social factors, with cognitive aging and brain health over time, not just in older adults but across the lifespan (Lifestyle Choices and Brain HealthTrusted Source).

This article follows the video’s journey: sleep, learning, movement, stress tools, relationships, nutrition, and the mindset shift of using failure as feedback.

Habit 1: Sleep like it is your brain’s daily reset

Sleep is not passive time. In this framing, it is active brain maintenance.

The discussion highlights several reasons sleep matters: memory consolidation, clearing metabolic “waste,” repair, and moving what you learned during the day from short-term to long-term storage. When sleep is short or irregular, the cost is not just fatigue. It can show up as worse focus, weaker recall, and poorer decisions.

A key detail from the video is that regularity matters. It is not only how many hours you get, but also whether your bedtimes and wake times swing around.

What the research shows: In a Harvard-based analysis of student sleep patterns, more sleep early in the semester was linked with higher academic performance, and irregular sleep timing was linked with lower GPA (Harvard Gazette summaryTrusted Source).

What “prioritizing sleep” looks like in real life

The target in the video is 7 to 9 hours of quality sleep, adjusted for the individual.

That range is a starting point, not a rule to obsess over. The bigger takeaway is to treat sleep like a scheduled commitment, not the leftover time after scrolling, work, and chores.

Here are concrete ways to make that commitment easier, without turning your nights into a complicated biohacking project:

Pro Tip: If you want one high-impact change, set a “devices down” time that is earlier than you think you need. Protecting the last part of your evening often protects the next day’s focus.

Habits 2 and 3: Learn continuously, move consistently

These two habits work like a cognitive one-two punch. One challenges the brain directly. The other supports the brain through the body.

The video’s argument is straightforward: successful people are lifelong learners, and they keep their bodies moving because “when your body moves, your brain grooves.”

Habit 2: Continuous learning (neuroplasticity on purpose)

Learning is not just collecting information. It is training.

When you learn new things, your brain forms new connections through neuroplasticity (the brain’s ability to change with experience). This perspective emphasizes daily stretching of the mind, reading, podcasts, courses, and mental stimulation, as a way to keep cognition flexible and ready.

If you are busy, the practical takeaway is not “go back to school.” It is to stop letting your days become mentally repetitive.

Try one of these “low friction” learning patterns:

Habit 3: Exercise (movement as mental clarity)

You do not need hours in a gym to support your brain.

The video calls out a simple, powerful dose: 30 minutes of walking a day may support mental clarity, focus, and creativity. It also highlights a modern problem: long periods of sitting. “Sitting is the new smoking” is the memorable line, and while it is a slogan, the underlying message is valid, prolonged sedentary time is associated with worse health outcomes.

This is about building motion into the day, not chasing athletic perfection.

A practical “brain breaks” menu (choose 1 to 3 per day):

Important: If you have heart disease, uncontrolled blood pressure, dizziness, or you are returning to exercise after an illness or injury, consider checking in with a healthcare professional before significantly changing your activity level.

»MORE: Want a simple weekly plan? Create a “minimum movement schedule” that you can do even on stressful weeks, for example, three 30-minute walks plus two 10-minute mobility sessions. Consistency is the goal.

Habit 4: Stress management that protects performance

Stress is inevitable. Unmanaged stress is optional.

This framing is blunt: chronic stress is a “brain killer” if left unchecked. The mechanism mentioned is cortisol, a stress hormone that can affect memory, focus, problem-solving, and decision-making over time when elevated chronically.

The key insight here is not to eliminate stress, that is not realistic. It is to build tools that prevent stress from hijacking your mental performance.

Here are the stress-management strategies highlighted in the video, translated into actionable steps:

The video also mentions cold exposure as a resilience practice, discussed in a podcast conversation with the daughters of Wim Hof. Cold exposure is not required for brain health, and it is not for everyone, especially people with certain cardiovascular conditions. If you are curious, it is worth discussing with a clinician and starting conservatively.

Q: If I only have 2 minutes, what is the best stress tool to use?

A: Choose the tool you will actually do. For many people, that is slow breathing because it is private, free, and immediate. A short “inhale 4, exhale 6” pattern for 2 minutes can reduce the sense of urgency that drives impulsive decisions.

If stress feels constant, not situational, it may help to pair quick tools with a longer-term plan, like scheduling movement, reducing overcommitment, and talking to a mental health professional.

Health educator, MPH

For broader context, major public health groups emphasize stress management and mental well-being as part of protecting cognitive health across adulthood (CDC Healthy Brain InitiativeTrusted Source).

Habit 5: Build relationships that build your brain

“Success is not just about what you do, but also who you surround yourself with.”

This is one of the video’s most unique and memorable perspectives because it connects the social world to the nervous system: “Your social networks affect your neurological networks.” The idea is that positive relationships support emotional well-being, resilience, and cognitive function.

Then comes the mechanism the video highlights: mirror neurons, specialized brain cells associated with learning through observation and empathy. The practical takeaway is not to obsess over neuroscience terms. It is to take your environment seriously. Over time, you can adopt the attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors of the people you spend the most time with.

The “average of the five people” idea is a simplification, but it points to something real: your default conversations, norms, and expectations shape your default actions.

A relationship audit you can do this week

This is not about cutting everyone off. It is about being intentional.

A strong social foundation is also recognized in broader brain health guidance. The American Heart Association notes that social and psychological factors can be part of a brain-health-preserving checklist in primary care (13 things clinics can check to help preserve brain healthTrusted Source).

Habit 6: Eat for neuron nutrition, not just calories

You are not only feeding your body. You are feeding your attention.

The video uses a phrase from the speaker’s book, “neuron nutrition,” and ties it to a simple fact: the brain is energy-demanding, using about 20% of your total energy expenditure despite being only about 2 to 3% of body mass.

That framing changes the question from “How do I eat less?” to “How do I fuel better?” Focus, memory, decision-making, and emotion regulation are all positioned as being sensitive to what you eat.

The speaker also acknowledges bio-individuality. People can respond differently, and assessments like microbiome or nutrient testing are mentioned as options. The practical core remains food-first: emphasize healthy fats, antioxidants, and omega-3s.

The video’s brain-supportive food pillars

A simple way to apply this without tracking everything is to build “brain upgrades” into meals:

What the research shows: Lifestyle patterns, including diet quality, physical activity, sleep, and cardiovascular risk management, are linked with cognitive outcomes and risk of decline over time (FAU summary on healthy habits and cognitive declineTrusted Source).

Habit 7: Treat failure as feedback (and train a growth mindset)

Most people try to avoid failure. This approach tries to use it.

The video’s language is strong and memorable: “There is no such thing as failure, only feedback,” and “feedback is the breakfast of champions.” The point is not that setbacks feel good. It is that they contain information, what worked, what did not, what to adjust.

This is where brain health meets mindset. When you reframe failure as data, you reduce threat response and increase learning response. Over time, that can build resilience, grit, and flexibility.

How to practice “failure as feedback” without spiraling

This is a step-by-step method you can use after a mistake, a missed goal, or a conflict.

The video also ties this to a growth mindset, the belief that abilities and intelligence can be developed through effort and learning. The practical result is persistence. You are less likely to quit when the first plan fails.

A final line from the video matters here: “Use it or lose it.” Brain health is not only about knowing. It is about applying.

Q: How do I know if I’m being resilient or just pushing too hard?

A: Resilience usually includes recovery. If your “grit” includes chronic sleep loss, constant irritability, or worsening anxiety, it may be a sign you need a different strategy, not more force.

A helpful check is to ask, “Is this challenge making me stronger over time, or smaller?” If it is shrinking your life, consider talking with a healthcare professional or therapist about safer, more sustainable tools.

Health educator, MPH

Key Takeaways