I get frustrated with failing at Su Doku and crossword puzzles, so I just give up

There is no easy “trick” to doing these puzzles; you get results by working the brain hard, which is why they are so good for maintaining brain function. The brain gets into lazy habits, doing things the way it has always done things; puzzles force it to make new pathways.

With some puzzles, such as crosswords, there are rules and conventions which it helps to know, but practice is the best way of learning them. If you get stuck on a puzzle, take a break (see panel, facing page) and come back to it refreshed.

Studies have indicated that one reason that older people find problem solving harder than young people is that they do not mentally “attack” the task with the same vigour. But psychologists at the University of Toronto have found that older people can reactivate this surge of brain activity by continuing to train the brain with problem-solving and memory tasks.

I’m often asked to come up with new ideas at work, but I find it very hard to think in genuinely innovative ways

The secret of looking at any problem in a really creative way is to break free of all assumptions and to approach the problem in a completely different way. Here are three ways of doing that:

- The psychology guru Edward de Bono recommends using random words to get a new angle on a problem. For example, you want to provide a theme for a new restaurant. Rather than thinking along the usual lines of Chinese, Italian etc, you find a random word in a book, say it’s “cloak”. What does this get you thinking of? Cloaked figures such as highway robbers? Waiters wearing masks? A Venetian carnival?

- Rephrase the question you are trying to answer, to get rid of assumptions and to clarify your thoughts. Imagine you are trying to explain it to a foreigner. If you do this, it sometimes becomes clear that the real problem is the way the problem is being addressed, or even a flaw in the question itself. Lateral thinking brain teasers illustrate beautifully our natural tendency to become stumped by assumptions. Here’s a poser. A baby fell out of a 40-floor building on to concrete and lived. How? Answer: it fell out of the ground-floor window.

- Brainstorming is the classic way of coming up with new ideas to solve old problems. But it works only if you embrace every idea that comes into your head, no matter how surreal. And you have to gather lots of ideas, too, and write them down. When you sift through them, it helps to use the more surreal ideas as creative prompts, as de Bono suggests.

Some problems just seem too big to deal with

The secret is to break them into more manageable small problems. Try writing the problem down on the left-hand side of a piece of paper. Then to the right of that, write down factors that may have contributed to the problem. Then to the right of that, write down factors that may have contributed to each of them. You can go on if you like, but as you do so, common themes may start to emerge, and you may begin to get a grasp of what needs to be tackled first.

TRY THIS...

You can boost your brain by looking after its physical needs. If you get stuck on a tricky problem, try the following.

Air your brain — with a brisk walk or other exercise. Your brain needs oxygen to fuel it, and new research indicates that increased blood flow affects brain cell activity.

Feed your brain — it consumes 20 per cent of the total energy your body uses, so carbohydrates will help. Foods high in choline (eggs, soya), an essential nutrient similar to the B vitamins, and omega oils (in oily fish) are said to improve concentration.

Water your brain — dehydration affects concentration.

Rest your brain — researchers have found that people who get an extra hour’s sleep do better at problem-solving. So have a nap.

Relax your brain — there’s evidence that stress can impair brain cells’ ability to communicate. So have a bath or stroke the cat.

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