It’s not you, it’s your brain

YOU are in the middle of your college education, well on the way to becoming a working adult, yet you find yourself on a roller coaster when it comes to planning, and even managing your temper.

Guess what? It is not your fault. It is the way your brain is working. Or rather, how it is not. In the past, it was believed that people matured at the age of 18. However, thanks to MRIs and other clever new tools, we know today that the human brain does not fully develop until a person turns 24 – and sometimes even later.

If you are a student, this is important to acknowledge because the prefrontal cortex – the bit that lies just behind your forehead – is heavily involved in impulse control, complex planning, attention and decisionmaking.

Impulse control is important because it means young adults are not as good at selfdiscipline as older adults. In terms of decisionmaking, this part is where your organised thinking, risk assessment and logical thinking come into play.

What this means is that you might have trouble arranging facts, taking risk into consideration and making decisions based on facts rather than emotion.

In some ways, this has advantages. Young adults can make great entrepreneurs because they take chances older adults shy away from. However, the flip side is that you might make some poor decisions.

Scientists suggest that you can train your brain by making sure you stay physically healthy. This means eating properly, getting plenty of sleep and staying off drugs.

Additionally, you can boost your overall development by challenging yourself in cognitive terms and enjoying a rich learning environment.