Executive function is the set of mental skills that helps us stay organized, manage our emotions, and adapt to life’s challenges. It’s what allows us to meet deadlines, make decisions, and stay focused even when the pressure is on.
Strong executive function doesn’t happen by chance—it’s built through consistent, intentional actions. The choices you make each day, from how you start your morning to how you handle stress, play a critical role in shaping your cognitive abilities.
However, it doesn’t have to be boring, dreadfully mundane, overwhelming, or difficult. In fact, to adopt habits consistently and truly and fully improve your life, you need to engage in activities that you enjoy and look forward to.
The Psychology of Habits
For a long time, the discussion around habits has been focused on the downsides and what happens when bad behaviors become automated. But this is not as simplistic as replacing one seemingly “bad” habit with a “good” one. Once you understand how habits work, you can turn them into a superpower that helps you become the best version of yourself.
You might remember voices from your childhood saying things like, “If you keep eating candies, it’ll turn into a bad habit, and you’ll get rotten teeth.” And that’s not particularly wrong. Too much sugar can be detrimental to your health, but that doesn’t mean you have to avoid sugar all the time. What you need is to find the balance that works for you.
So, the first step is to identify when certain undesired behaviors might become harder to control. If you have diabetes, you should certainly avoid sugar and adhere to a diet that is beneficial to your health. Otherwise, you can allow yourself a dose of sugar—in a quantity that makes sense for your specific physical and mental state. Once you have identified what a bad habit looks like in your life, you can go about either keeping or changing these habits. That’s all. No big deal.
Then, your next big step would be figuring out which positive habits you want to adopt, focusing on things you are truly excited to do. Like honing your focus so that you’re super sharp, or improving your creative problem-solving skills so that you can finally get that promotion you’ve been dreaming of.
How to Adopt Positive Habits
Psychological models, like the habit loop, explain how repeated behaviors create lasting neural pathways in the brain. When we adopt positive habits, we can strengthen executive function by reinforcing the mental processes that support focus, memory, and adaptability.
Popularized by Charles Duhigg in his book, The Power of Habit, the habit loop helps us understand the psychology behind why we develop habits and how they become automatic behaviors.
The loop has three main components:
- Cue: The trigger that initiates a habit. It could be an internal feeling (like stress or hunger) or an external event (like the sound of your alarm or seeing a snack on the counter). Cues are the signals your brain associates with a specific behavior. They’re essential because they activate the habit loop.
- Routine: The actual behavior or action you take in response to the cue—the habit itself. It could be a productive action, like going for a walk, or a less beneficial one, like procrastinating by binge-watching TV.
- Reward: The benefit or positive outcome you experience after completing the routine. Rewards reinforce the habit by telling your brain, “This behavior is worth repeating.”
Over time, your brain links the cue and the routine with the reward, making the behavior automatic. If you want to change your habits or adopt new ones, you can use this loop to your advantage.
There are several ways to do this—and it’s not difficult. It just requires some investigative work into your daily behaviors. Think of it as an opportunity to put on your scientific hat. Open a new note on your smartphone and write down the cues that trigger a routine and the directly related reward. Once you identify each component, you can start making changes.
For example, if feeling anxious triggers an urge to scroll through social media (habit), the routine could be checking your phone when you hear a notification (the cue). Cues are often tied to specific contexts—locations, times of day, emotional states, or people–so by identifying your cues, you can control your habits.
If you want to reduce time wasted on social media doom scrolling, you can pause social media notifications at work (using your smartphone’s focus mode can help). You can also turn notifications off permanently and see how you feel about it. The feeling is key—as this is the reward gained through this particular habit.
Remember—rewards don’t have to be tangible. Emotional rewards, like feeling relaxed or proud, are just as powerful. By turning off social media notifications, you’ll feel at ease and less stressed, but if you switch the action altogether, you might feel even better. You can replace social media notifications with mindfulness notifications, letting this become the cue for a new habit of calmness and relaxation.
Practical Exercises to Strengthen Executive Function
Hopefully, by now we have convinced you that habits can make a positive impact on your life. The key to making these changes is finding the activities that are most suitable for your life and personality.
Humans are similar in many ways, but we also operate differently in our daily lives. Each of us reacts differently to various cues, and we often view rewards through the lenses of our values. The good thing is—this diversity lends itself to creating many activities. And with so many options, you’re sure to find something meaningful to turn into a rewarding positive habit.
To help you get started, we’ve created a list of activities you could incorporate into your daily life to enhance executive function. Remember—finding something that works for you is key to long-term growth.
1. Move Your Body, Sharpen Your Mind
Physical activity doesn’t just strengthen your muscles—it supercharges your brain. Aerobic exercise, in particular, is a proven way to boost executive function. When you move, your brain releases BDNF (brain-derived neurotrophic factor), a protein that promotes learning, memory, and mental flexibility.
Here are some activities to try:
- Brisk Walking or Running: A 20-minute jog or a brisk walk clears mental fog and sharpens your focus. Studies show that even short bursts of aerobic activity can improve problem-solving and impulse control.
- Sports and Dance: Activities like tennis, basketball, or dance combine movement with quick decision-making, pushing your working memory and cognitive flexibility to the limit.
- Yoga and Tai Chi: These practices blend mindfulness with movement, reducing stress while improving focus and emotional control.
2. Harness the Power of Technology
Modern technology offers incredible tools to train your brain. Cognitive training programs, like Mastermind’s, challenge your working memory, attention, and problem-solving skills. These systems adapt to your progress, ensuring that you’re always operating at your cognitive edge.
Virtual reality (VR) takes brain training to the next level. VR simulations place you in immersive, real-world scenarios where you must multitask, prioritize, and think quickly. For instance, in our program, you might practice eye control by smoothly following stimuli that are placed right in front of you, or test your skills with a training module that requires split-second decisions.
Research published in Nature found that targeted cognitive training improves working memory and focus by engaging the prefrontal cortex. VR enhances this effect by immersing you in real-world challenges that require quick thinking and adaptability. By practicing in a safe, controlled environment, you strengthen the brain’s ability to handle similar situations in life.
3. Build Mental Clarity with Mindfulness
Mindfulness trains the brain to pause and respond thoughtfully rather than reacting impulsively. Studies from Harvard University show that mindfulness enhances working memory and focus by reducing activity in the amygdala (the brain’s stress center) and strengthening connections in the prefrontal cortex. These changes improve self-regulation and the ability to manage stress.
Here are some mindfulness practices to start with:
- Mindful Breathing: Take five minutes to breathe deeply and intentionally. Inhale through your nose for four counts, hold for four, and exhale for six. This simple practice calms your mind and improves your attention span.
- Body Scans: Close your eyes and slowly bring your awareness to each part of your body, noticing areas of tension. This exercise helps you regulate emotions and enhances your self-awareness.
Mindfulness doesn’t require hours of meditation. Small, consistent practices can lead to noticeable changes in your focus and stress levels.
4. Organize Your Tasks, Free Your Mind
Structuring your day reduces cognitive overload, which frees up mental resources for higher-level thinking.
Here are some tips to get you started:
- Task Chunking: Break down big tasks into smaller, actionable steps. For example, if you’re preparing a presentation, focus on creating an outline, gathering data, and then designing slides one step at a time.
- Prioritization: Write a list of tasks for the day, and identify the most important ones. This simple act helps you focus on what matters and avoids decision fatigue.
- Time Blocking: Schedule specific blocks of time for focused work, breaks, and creative tasks. When your day is clearly mapped out, you reduce the mental effort of figuring out what to do next.
5. Strengthen Your Brain with Problem-Solving Challenges
Problem-solving exercises challenge your working memory and cognitive flexibility. For instance, a study showed that logic puzzles and strategy games improve executive function by requiring the brain to identify patterns, test solutions, and adapt when things don’t go as planned. These exercises mirror real-world scenarios where quick thinking and adaptability are key.
Here are fun games and activities to try:
- Strategic Games: Chess, Sudoku, and strategy-based games challenge you to plan ahead, think flexibly, and solve problems efficiently.
- Creative Projects: Activities like building a model, crafting a DIY project, or planning a detailed event force you to use multiple executive skills, from memory to organization.
- Multi-Step Tasks: Take on projects that require you to manage complexity, such as organizing a group event or cooking a multi-course meal. These tasks mimic real-world challenges and build mental stamina.
6. Engage in Social Problem-Solving
Social interaction engages multiple aspects of executive function simultaneously. You must focus on others’ perspectives (cognitive flexibility), regulate emotional responses (self-control), and juggle competing demands (working memory). Research demonstrates how group problem-solving boosts adaptability and critical thinking, as you’re constantly challenged to think on your feet and manage dynamic situations.
Here are social activities that can boost your skills:
- Collaborative challenges: Try escape rooms, brainstorming sessions, or team problem-solving games. These scenarios require quick thinking, adaptability, and teamwork, making them perfect for building cognitive flexibility.
- Structured debates: Joining a debate group or engaging in discussions about complex topics helps you practice thinking critically, organizing your thoughts, and staying calm under pressure.
7. Interactive Learning
Interactive learning taps into the brain’s ability to learn by doing. A study found that experiential learning strengthens executive function by requiring you to prioritize tasks, adapt to new information, and make decisions under pressure. The immediate feedback provided by these activities reinforces neural connections, making the skills more ingrained.
Hands-on experiences, like workshops or role-playing scenarios, mimic real-world demands, forcing you to prioritize, adapt, and think critically in real time. For example, role-playing a business negotiation or solving a simulated crisis helps you practice decision-making under stress while improving your focus and flexibility.
Key Takeaways
Improving executive function doesn’t require dramatic changes—it’s about making small, consistent efforts to challenge your brain and build better habits. Whether you start with a short mindfulness practice, a brisk walk, or a VR-based cognitive challenge, each step brings you closer to sharper focus, better self-control, and greater adaptability.
Commit to just one exercise today. Over time, you’ll notice how these practices enhance not only your productivity but also your ability to manage life’s complexities with confidence and ease.