There’s some science to this. Studies at the prestigious Massachussetts Institute of Technology have found that the firing activity of brain cells (neurons) gradually changes as habits take hold. Once painstakingly formed, they are hard to change, and when they do, it takes only a small stimulus to kick off the old firing pattern again.

The more we take diversions from these well-worn paths, the better because the longer we don’t try new things and new approaches, the harder it is to feel confident that we can do things differently. That way we never surprise ourselves.

We need to learn tips and tricks to find new angles on old problems, and do things that we never thought we could do—from having a civilised conversation with your teenage daughter, to having a great idea for a novel.

If you’re going to surprise yourself, you’re going to have to do at least one of these three things:

- Know yourself: your tendencies, strengths and weakness, and your patterns of behaviour.

- Listen to others — experts, research and friends — who can present you with new information, and help you to think in a different way.

- Train your brain: so that it doesn’t lose processing power, and allows you address problems in innovative ways.

That’s exactly what this guide does. Click the links on the left to explore the expert advice which will help you to think differently, and play our interactive puzzles which will help to strengthen underused areas of your brain.

We think we’re bad at things, but we’re not. We can all surprise ourselves if we just give it a go.

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