Page 115 - Free the Idea Monkey

1. Shower your way to creativity. Yep, it’s
absolutely true. There is a scientific theory that
says, water hitting your head helps trigger the syn-
apses and that’s why people get great ideas in the
shower. But I think it’s simpler than that. The ideas
occur because you are not making an effort to think.
You aren’t worried about anything. You are not
stressed. Hence some of your best thinking occurs.

2. Sleep on it. Remember how your mom used to say, “Why
don’t you sleep on it, honey?” when you were wrestling with a big

issue? Well, when it comes to big ideas and problem
solving, mother really does know best.
The next time you want to solve a major chal-
lenge or be unusually brilliant, think about it in
bed. Don’t push yourself to figure out the answer
before you fall asleep. Instead, just go through
the issues at hand and tell yourself that you will

have the answer in the morning. In my experience,
this technique amplifies the power of the shower, because there are
even fewer distractions to occupy your mind when you
are asleep.

Build on this idea: You can
employ an alternate version of this
while awake. The next time you
can’t think of a name, date or impor-
tant fact, just tell yourself aloud, “I
will not think about this for awhile,
and the answer will come to me.” This technique clears the traffic in
your mind and lets your subconscious go to work. Your answer will
often pop into your head the moment you stop “thinking about it.”

Thomas Edison, Leonardo de Vinci and Albert
Einstein all reportedly took short naps during
the day to rest their conscious mind and let
the subconscious go to work.

100 H O W T O P R O D U C E B I G I D E A S O N D E M A N D