--- title: These 5 Things Will Make You Smarter description: Caffeine increases the speed of brain activity and nicotine enhances short-term working memory canonical: https://time.com/3640926/5-things-smarter/ author: Eric Barker article:opinion: true article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2014-12-27T05:01:37.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-03-31T08:05:59.065Z article:section: Ideas og:title: These 5 Things Will Make You Smarter og:description: Caffeine increases the speed of brain activity and nicotine enhances short-term working memory og:url: https://time.com/3640926/5-things-smarter/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt51d117c63926c2c3/69876ffc8e06017d4e459593/brain.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 3450 og:image:height: 1941 og:image:alt: brain og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: These 5 Things Will Make You Smarter twitter:description: Caffeine increases the speed of brain activity and nicotine enhances short-term working memory twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt51d117c63926c2c3/69876ffc8e06017d4e459593/brain.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # These 5 Things Will Make You Smarter > Sponsored content. 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Inside TIME is the newsletter where TIME's Editor-in-Chief explains cover selection and the editorial reasoning behind major stories. It is free at time.com/newsletters. #### Who is the editor of TIME? Sam Jacobs is TIME's Editor-in-Chief. He writes Inside TIME, a twice-weekly newsletter about the newsroom's reporting and editorial decisions. #### Is Inside TIME free? Yes. Inside TIME is a free newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. A paid TIME subscription is separate and available at time.com/subscribe-agent. by [Eric Barker](https://time.com/author/eric-barker/) ## Eric Barker Dec 27, 2014 5:01 AM UTC  Floating brain on green background Floating brain on green background Getty Images by [Eric Barker](https://time.com/author/eric-barker/) ## Eric Barker Dec 27, 2014 5:01 AM UTC ## **1) Get rid of the distractions** You can’t multitask. Via [Brain Rules: 12 Principles for Surviving and Thriving at Work, Home, and School](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0979777704/ref=as%5Fli%5Fss%5Ftl?ie=UTF8&tag=spacforrent-20&linkCode=as2&camp=217145&creative=399349&creativeASIN=0979777704): --- > “” --- All those buzzing text messages and email chimes can reduce mental ability by an average of 10 IQ points. For men, it’s about three times the effect of smoking marijuana. Via [Your Brain at Work: Strategies for Overcoming Distraction, Regaining Focus, and Working Smarter All Day Long](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0061771295/ref=as%5Fli%5Fss%5Ftl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0061771295&linkCode=as2&tag=spacforrent-20): --- > “” --- ## **2) Get your sleep** If you’ve missed sleep, you’ve reduced your intelligence. Via [Brain Rules: 12 Principles for Surviving and Thriving at Work, Home, and School](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0979777704/ref=as%5Fli%5Fss%5Ftl?ie=UTF8&tag=spacforrent-20&linkCode=as2&camp=217145&creative=399349&creativeASIN=0979777704): --- > “” --- Think you’re just fine cheating yourself on sleep? Of course you do. But [you’re wrong](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2011/04/how-little-sleep-can-you-get-away-with/). --- > “” --- What if you can’t get a good night’s sleep but need to learn new info? Even naps can help: Via [Dreamland: Adventures in the Strange Science of Sleep](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/039308020X/ref=as%5Fli%5Fss%5Ftl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=039308020X&linkCode=as2&tag=spacforrent-20): --- > “” --- ## **3) Performance enhancing drugs for your brain** No, they’re not anabolic steroids. It’s caffeine, sugar and nicotine. Coffee and nicotine make you smarter. Via [Brain Candy: Science, Paradoxes, Puzzles, Logic, and Illogic to Nourish Your Neurons](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0307588033/ref=as%5Fli%5Fss%5Ftl?ie=UTF8&tag=spacforrent-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0307588033): --- > “” --- Don’t like coffee? Studies show [Red Bull](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2011/07/whats-a-quick-and-easy-way-to-boost-cognitive/) can do the trick. A [donut](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2011/02/can-coffee-and-a-donut-improve-brainpower/) can help too. Or do a bit of exercise and have a sugary drink. Via [Mind Performance Hacks: Tips & Tools for Overclocking Your Brain](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0596101538/ref=as%5Fli%5Fss%5Ftl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0596101538&linkCode=as2&tag=spacforrent-20) by the excellent [Vaughan Bell](https://twitter.com/vaughanbell): --- > “” --- ## **4) Keep Learning** You always hear that doing puzzles can help stave off dementia. In reality, those aren’t nearly enough to keep your brain sharp. But the principle holds. Want to keep your mind powerful? Do something that really forces you to stretch yourself: * [Numerous](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2010/12/how-to-keep-your-mind-strong-as-you-age/) [studies](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2011/03/are-bilinguals-better-at-creative-problem-sol/) have shown learning another language is good for your brain. * There’s a [lot](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/what-can-increase-90-of-childrens-verbal-inte) of [evidence](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/can-music-lessons-raise-iq) that learning to play [music](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/how-can-you-increase-your-iq) can [make you smarter](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/should-everyone-be-required-to-learn-a-musica). (Listening to classical music [might increase your IQ](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/can-classical-music-make-you-smarter) as well.) * Or learn [a new skill](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/how-can-you-increase-your-iq). ## **5) Believe in yourself** Want to be smarter? The first step is to [believe that you _can_ become smarter](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2011/07/is-there-an-easy-way-to-become-smarter/): --- > “” --- Surround yourself with people who believe in you and you’ll perform better: Via [The Heart of Social Psychology: A Backstage View of a Passionate Science](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0669211443/ref=as%5Fli%5Fss%5Ftl?ie=UTF8&tag=spacforrent-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0669211443): --- > “” --- **_This piece originally appeared on_** [**_Barking Up the Wrong Tree_**](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2013/02/checklist-smarter/)**_. J_** **_oin over 145,000 readers and get a free weekly email update_** [**_here_**](http://eepurl.com/o6uAD)**_._** Related posts: * [How To Stop Being Lazy And Get More Done – 5 Expert Tips](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2014/08/how-to-stop-being-lazy/) * [What 10 things should you do every day to improve your life?](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2012/05/what-10-things-should-you-do-every-day-to-imp/) * [How To Make Your Life Better By Sending Five Simple Emails](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2013/07/make-your-life-better/) ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"OpinionNewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3640926/5-things-smarter/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3640926/5-things-smarter/"},"headline":"These 5 Things Will Make You Smarter","datePublished":"2014-12-27T05:01:37.000Z","dateModified":"2026-03-31T08:05:59.065Z","description":"Caffeine increases the speed of brain activity and nicotine enhances short-term working memory","url":"https://time.com/3640926/5-things-smarter/","keywords":["Psychology","Brain","Sleep","learning"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt51d117c63926c2c3/69876ffc8e06017d4e459593/brain.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Eric Barker","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/eric-barker/"}],"articleSection":"Ideas","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt51d117c63926c2c3/69876ffc8e06017d4e459593/brain.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"brain","caption":"brain","creditText":"Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/ideas/","name":"Ideas"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/psychology/","name":"Psychology"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3640926/5-things-smarter/","name":"These 5 Things Will Make You Smarter"}}]}] ```