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Why do adolescents love taking risks? Understanding the Adolescent Brain

Adolescence, which starts at the onset of puberty and is now considered to go on till mid 20s, is usually considered a potentially troublesome age. Research bears this out - reckless driving, social media indiscretion, dangerous YOLO dares, crime, binge drinking, unintended pregnancies, attempted suicides and drug abuse incidence can all happen at this age. Everyone concerned is happy if the adolescent makes it through unscathed!

No doubt adolescence is a period of vulnerability but it is also a period of great opportunity and celebration. After infancy it is the second period of heightened brain plasticity. Psychology tells us that sensation seeking, high risk taking and penchant for novelty - hallmarks of this age, can be channeled into challenging the status quo and bring forth hyper innovation. And neuroscience is telling us that the way the brain remodels during adolescence – decrease in grey matter because of synaptic pruning and increase in white matter due to myelination changes the generalist, soak-it-all-in pre-puberty brain into a brain capable of becoming a super specialist, be it sports, music, art or academics.

In our new series, for the next few weeks, we will be explaining with simple visuals, how to make the most of the adolescent brain. We start with understanding why an adolescent cannot resist taking risks.

Cut to the Chase with Education Evangelist Prof M.M. Pant

In our weekly interview series, Cut to the Chase, where we chat with Professionals at the Peak of their Game on what advice they have for young people, this week we are in conversation with Prof M.M. Pant, a master of many disciplines - a physicist who taught at IIT Kanpur, former Director of Computing and Pro Vice-Chancellor at IGNOU, a CEO and a lawyer! An evangeliser of new education models using emerging technologies and innovative pedagogies, Prof Pant looks ahead to his future self as “a full time storyteller for the rest of my life.”

At Timeless Lifeskills we consider him our mentor-at-large and fondly call him Madan Morpheus Pant, as he often gives us the red pill and makes us see deep into the rabbit hole of the 21st century and beyond.

Whether you are a youngster figuring out how the velocity of current socio-economic change is likely to impact you, or a parent, or a teacher, be like Alice and dive in… http://bit.ly/profpant 

Growth Mindset

Cut to the Chase with Deepa Krishnan, banker turned entreprenuer

In Cut to the Chase this week we chat with Deepa Krishnan, who after 18 years in the financial services and banking sector, quit and moulded her passion for responsible tourism into her vocation. Deepa is the founder-owner of Magic Tours of India, an enterprise that partners with non-profits to upskill and employ students from low-income neighbourhoods. Deepa is also an award-winning travel blogger. http://bit.ly/deepakrishnan

Overcoming Inner Conflicts

Visual Explanation on overcoming inner conflicts. More at http://facebook.com/lifeskills 

This week we chat with Amitabh Pande a consumer insights maestro, who has recently quit PepsiCo to strike out on his own as an independent consultant. Amitabh explains how data has become a commodity and it is the ability to derive insight from information that is truly of value today. But what sort of formal and informal education, mindset, qualification and experience helps a young person succeed in this field? Read this interview to find out... http://bit.ly/amitabhpande

In Cut to the Chase, our weekly interview series, our endeavour is to give 'insights' into different professions to help our young audience make wiser career choices. Feel free to share.