3 Brain Tricks For Expanding Attention and Handling Stress

Hannah Cole frames her latest episode around a deliberate brain reset, a month‑long pause that stripped away every non‑essential commitment. As a seasonal creative entrepreneur, she could afford to push low‑priority items aside, keeping only critical tax filings and client work. The reset wasn’t about productivity; it was about honoring the limits of an ADHD brain and the current economic uncertainty. By treating the month as a mental spring cleaning, she created space to observe her business without the usual assumptions, a practice she likens to the humility of drawing.

The episode then pivots to a concrete accountability tool: monthly co‑working sessions hosted on Zoom. Cole keeps a running list of dreaded tasks—contract reviews, tangled emails, invoice reconciliation—and declares them for a 90‑minute live block. The presence of peers on camera turns procrastination into commitment, instantly lifting psychological weight. Listeners can join the paid tier for $12 USD per month, gaining reminders, a supportive community, and the chance to work side‑by‑side with a tax professional. This structure blends social accountability with the flexibility self‑employed people need.

Finally, Cole shares the third brain trick: swapping nightly Netflix for reading. She discovered that screen time disrupts sleep and fragments attention, while a book before bed improves rest and extends sustained focus. By reading roughly a book a week—about 50 titles a year—she reports sharper concentration, a valuable edge as AI tools threaten to erode deep thinking. The science she cites, from the Ezra Klein Show, confirms that narrative immersion trains the brain’s attention circuitry. Cole invites entrepreneurs to adopt the habit, promising better sleep, clearer thinking, and a stronger foundation for growing their businesses.