I remember first hearing the term neural pathways when I was a teenager. No idea where, who, or why the topic came up — probably on 60 Minutes. But I was fascinated.

When I surprise my brain — try a new composition, break a visual rule, rearrange something on a whim — neurons that rarely fire together suddenly start “talking.” New synaptic connections form and strengthen. Over time, the more I flex that creative muscle, the more flexible my thinking becomes. Surprise yourself.

Now, I’m no expert (or even non-expert adjacent), but I wake up most days wondering how I’ll power through again — with all my uncertainty not just about life, but about what this day will bring. What does any of this mean? What good is it to focus on something so abstract?

Those are the questions that usually show up around 7 a.m., after two strong cups of coffee. I work for six hours, then take a nap. (It’s a system.)

Every once in a while, though, I try to get granular. In this moment — what can I do to keep myself busy and engaged? Because honestly, my usual mental loop goes something like: start a business, fail at business, keep looking for my next gig, worry there won’t be another gig, Google random things, scroll endlessly, think about how much I want a new food processor, and wonder — what is that thing on my skin?

One morning, I started scrolling through the photos on my phone — my real social media. I take a lot of pictures. Who knew we’d all be journaling our lives daily, whether we meant to or not? Looking through those moments, I let my mind wander. It can be an emotional process — it's a reluctant roller coaster ride, watching a documentary of your own life.

I’m not a big fan of social media. Honestly, it’s a strange place — putting your thoughts out there, because who cares? I care and I think that's enough for now.

So, back to neural pathways — and whatever this post is about.

I picked ten photos off my phone that caught my attention and just started writing about whatever that image brought to my mind. No judgment, no overthinking, just letting my inner voice do the talking. This little creative uptick came during a time — not unlike this morning — when I needed to take some small step, to try something, to participate in my life and shift my thinking.

I started snapping random photos on a whim a few years ago — not trying to channel Annie Leibovitz, just trying to get out of my own head. And it worked. Adding the writing is another layer of creativity I can do without preparation ("or skill").

Spontaneity nudged my brain out of its “executive” mode — the one that plans, edits, and overthinks — into a more associative, playful one. That’s where the weird juxtapositions and surprising connections happened (hence, images of fresh herbs and coffee cups with fabulous expressions). That’s where new ideas started forming.

I’ve posted pictures of herbs in these coffee cups more times than I can count. Who cares? I do. They make me smile.

That tiny spark of joy — the little “happy accident” that turns out better than planned — triggers dopamine. It reinforces the neural pathways that were just activated. My brain learns: Hey, that detour was worth it.

"You should enjoy the little detours to the fullest. Because that's where you'll find the things more important than what you want." —unknown. Turn here#trysomethingnew #becreative #ask #takeaction Mel Robbins #writeyourstory #RewireYourBrain