In The Source, Tara Swart covers the science of the law of attraction. Swart defines neuroplasticity as, “The power to create new pathways in the subconscious and conscious parts of our brain.” She writes:

It’s important not to overcomplicate it. Everyday examples of neuroplasticity are all around us. When a colleague and leadership expert that I teach with at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) decided to find out more about the latest neuroscience research that was going on there, she shared the story of meeting one of the neuroscience professors who asked her what she had for lunch the previous Tuesday. As she focused on remembering, then told him the answer, he said, “That’s neuroplasticity! You just strengthened the connection for that particular memory simply by recalling it.” This may seem like a small thing, but it is a simple example of how we strengthen connections in the brain with every thought or memory. 

Try it yourself, right now. Call to mind a day: last Friday, for example, or a memorable day further off: a significant birthday. Think through it in sequence. What happened? Where were you? Who else was there? How did you feel? Is this a happy or a difficult memory? By recalling it, you have fired up another connection between the neurons in the memory area of the hippocampus deep inside the brain. The more you relive a memory and/or the more intense the emotions associated with that memory, the stronger the connection becomes. This is a result of repetition as well as the intensity of emotion, making it either a fond memory that easily floats to the front of the mind or a dreaded memory that you want to forget but keep reinforcing by mulling over it. Either way, remember the phrase “neurons that fire together, wire together.” For better or for worse.

It’s fascinating to me; memory is just one way to foster new brain connections. Constance Wu wrote about sense memory in her memoir, Making a Scene:

One of the first things you learn in Method acting is called sense memory. Instead of dwelling on the emotions of an event, you recall the sensory parts—sound, touch, smell, taste, sight. Sense memories become the building blocks of your character history. When I first started writing this piece, I wrote like ten different drafts. Something didn’t click. I couldn’t figure out what I was trying to say or what the experience was trying to tell me. So I did what actors do: I went back to the beginning with sense memory—the smell of the library books and the mildewy blue chair. The color of moving leaves as seen through the skylight. That special summer quiet. The pleasure of a good book. Those sticky, sweet twin Popsicles that broke into halves. Mrs. Kantor’s voice, that gray sidewalk, the way my breath looked in the cold air. The heat of my tears and the sting that pulled them out of me. Mitchell’s hand on my back, his voice trying to comfort me. My cheeks burning in shame as every teacher said they didn’t believe in me. The way my heart soared when Mr. Frizzell said, “Of course she did.”

I’ve long wondered if listening to interviews, and transcribing them, could have a similar effect; effectively, you’re practicing someone else’s connections, and soaking their words up with your brain. Cathy Park Hong writes in Minor Feelings:

Pryor blowtorched the beige from my eyes. I didn’t know he was not just a comedian but also an artist and a revolutionary. He got rid of the punchline to prove that stand-up could be anything, which is what geniuses do: they blow up mothballed conventions in their chosen genre and show you how a song, or a poem, or a sculpture, can take any form. 

After my depression eventually lifted, I became obsessed with transcribing all of Pryor’s audio and filmed performances. I realized that Pryor on the page is not exactly funny. Without the hilarity of his delivery, Pryor’s words hit hard and blunt, as if the solvent of his humor has evaporated and left only the salt of his anger.

I believe this is one advantage audiobooks have; you hear the narrator’s delivery, the energy, especially if you repeat an audiobook over and over. Same goes for transcribing artwork or practicing copywork as well.