Wired for Success

Wired for Success

How Your Brain Powers Up Every Day

Ever feel like your brain’s doing more than just keeping up? That’s because it is! From singing along to your favourite Afrobeats track and helping a friend with homework to reading a comic, you’re growing your super brain without even realising it. The truth? You’re wired for success!

Here’s what science says: the stuff we do daily, such as chatting, singing, reading, eating healthy actually builds stronger brains. Especially when you’re little, but even now as a teen. No fancy apps needed. It’s the simple everyday moments of life that matter.

Growing up, you might recall caregivers, siblings, or neighbours always telling stories or singing songs.Turns out, those fun moments are like brain fertiliser! Science shows that children who hear more words early on develop better cognitive skills. In other words, talking, singing, and reading are everyday magic tricks that build brainpower. So if you had lots of love, play and words around you when you were a toddler your brain got a mega head start! Normal activities are helping young minds to grow into great thinkers. But it’s never too late to boost it.

Here are 4 simple brain boosters anyone can try:

• Talk: Speak up in any language. Conversations with your squad or explaining a TikTok trend to your gran grow your brain's power.
• Sing: That chorus you can’t stop repeating? It’s helping you memorise, express emotion, and connect.
• Read: Comics. Novels. Even subtitles. Reading stretches your imagination and fills your brain with new words and fresh ideas.
• Eat: Nutritious meals, especially protein enriched food, helps your brain grow and function well. Too much alcohol shrinks your brain’s grey matter and doesn’t allow the white matter to grow properly. For teens, whose brains are growing fast, this is exacerbated so good reason to watch what you put in your body.

Africa’s Culture = Brain Fuel

AcrossAfrica, storytelling, music and shared moments are more than fun, they also shape who we are. Think of that evening under the stars, with an elder starting astory like “Long time ago, when the animals could talk…”. These moments may seem simple, but they carry cultural superpowers. Folktales, lullabies, evenWhatsApp voice notes from family, all of them teach us, and fire up our thinking and connect us as we try to understand the world.

From ancient folktales about clever hares and mighty lions to contemporary legends of sports heroes and innovators, storytelling teaches us lessons and strengthens our neural connections. Singing together, be it gospel in a church choir or chanting at a football match, synchronises our brains in rhythm and empathy.

Whether you’re in a bustling township or chilling in a rural village, the sound of laughter, music and kind voices wires your brain for empathy, creativity and strength.

There’s a popular African proverb: “It takes a village to raise a child.” That village isn’t just about feeding or schooling a child, it’s about fuelling their minds and dreams. A child who grows up with supportive adults and a safe community is more likely to unlock their full potential. Sadly, not every young person gets these advantages. Some face challenges like hunger or lack of guidance, which can dim the sparks of their super brain. But when communities come together to put children and teens at the centre, incredible things happen. Imagine if everyone, parents, teachers, neighbours, leaders, joins hands to encourage the next generation. This is exactly the vision of initiatives like Hold My Hand.They know that young people aren’t just the future, they’re the present leaders and problem-solvers in training. By giving children healthy food, a loving environment, and opportunities to learn, we give their brains the boost to succeed against the odds. By listening to teens’ voices and involving them in community decisions, we show that their ideas matter. After all, who better to innovate solutions for tomorrow than the youth living through today’s challenges?

Hold My Hand is about making sure every child and teen has someone to walk with them. It’s about communities coming together, parents, teachers, neighbours, leaders, to help young people unlock their full potential.

Because when you feel supported, you believe in yourself. And when teens feel seen, heard and loved? They shine!

The Future Is You

Your voice.Your ideas. Your dreams. They matter, to your family, your community and your country. So keep talking, reading, singing, building. You’re not just growing up, you’re shaping the future.

And who knows? The next astrologist, president or game-changing artist could be… you.

*This article first appeared in African Science Stars Issue 10