I have a small 2” x 8” aluminum plate from an old IBM plaque that sits under glass just below the keyboard on my desk that reads ‘Think’. Each time I look at it, it gets me thinking about thinking (metacognitive awareness). As I think about this, it is somewhat of a paradox as, in the morning I meditate (not thinking) and then, throughout the day, I block off time specifically to do nothing but think. If you think about it, ‘thinking’ has been paramount in many great companies, brands, art, design, and ideas:
Think – IBM
Think Different – Apple
Think and Grow Rich – Napoleon Hill
As a Man Thinketh – James Allen
Whether you think you can or you can’t, you’re right – Henry Ford
The Thinker – Rodin
We Become What We Think – The Buddha
A number of years ago I read about Elmer R. Gates, an American inventor whose creative thinking led him to invent the foam fire extinguisher, an aseptic brewing and fermenting process, an improved electric iron, and more. He had a process he called ‘sitting for idea’s’ whereby he would purposely block off time to sit quietly in a room with no distractions, a pad of paper and a pencil. Over the course of an hour or more, he would simply sit and write down the ideas that came to him. He leveraged the power of his subconscious mind to draw out all kinds of ideas – some good, some bad, and many that led to some of the most creative thinking of his time.
It was over a decade and a half ago that I learned about this approach. I was a bit skeptical at first but thought ‘give it a try… as an experiment’. It took some practice but have come to depend on this approach as a valuable tool to help me solve problems – or at the very least, find seeds to solutions of problems… and there is nothing like the feeling you get when you come up with a creative idea to something you have been struggling with for some time.
I have to admit that I don’t practice this every day but I do use it multiple times a week. What I learned is that it is remarkable what is buried in our subconscious minds and when you let the noise go silent and focus on the signal, creative ideas and solutions seem to come from nowhere. These thoughts are fleeting though – so it is critical you jot them down quickly the second you have them.
My approach consists of:
-
-
One Moleskin quad ruled notebook
-
Two Unibal Vision Elite Pens (the kind that won’t leak in flight)
-
Cell phone, iPad, and monitors powered down or on silent
-
Quiet room with no distractions
-
Note: If #4 is not available, I use my Bose QC Noise Cancelling headphones (invented by Dr. Amar Bose for airline pilots to concentrate during flight – no doubt from some creative thinking session)
If I am trying to solve some specific challenge, I will write it on the top of the page and then sit and let the process happen. Other times, if I have no specific problem to work on, I will just sit and think – this is when some of the best ideas will come to you. It is remarkable how energizing this process is.
With practically everyone in the country under stay-at-home orders and cramped up inside most of the time, now, more than ever is a time we need to pause and spend time thinking.
Think about it.