Mastering our mind for better ideas

Sep 2023

Whether we like it or not, the digital noise we absorb everyday (yep, the doomscrolling, the media overload, and the speed at which we’re expected to live) affect our thinking. Constant engagement and relentless “productivity” doesn't just clutter our minds; it has a profound impact on our ability to think critically and come up with original ideas. The good news is: we can step outside the infinite scroll and reclaim our capacity to think creatively. We can ignore the endless open tabs for a second, to regain clarity of thought.

I’ve recently experienced this myself, after traveling for a couple of weeks and being offline for the most part. Nurturing creativity is also a topic I’ve always been interested in, so it made sense to share some of my lessons in the form of six habits for mental clarity, creative insight; and ironically, sustained productivity.

1. Doing vs. Plotting

Action and planning are meant to complement each other: immediate action, while fulfilling, can sometimes be akin to running in circles, if not backed by deliberate strategy; on the other hand, excessive planning can become an obstacle to doing anything at all. By using strategic thinking as a compass for action, and adjusting as we go along, we can produce better results.

The book “How to think more effectively” encourages us to be mindful of how much of our time is spent on execution, and how much of it is devoted to strategy. Strategic thinking can feel challenging due to a normalised state of distraction, lack of conditions for good thinking (not exactly our society’s strong suit), and the anxiety that often accompanies difficult topics: “the most profound thoughts we need to grapple with also have the most potential to disturb.” It’s certainly easier to carry on with the familiar tasks, however:

“We should strive to ensure that at least 20% of our efforts is devoted to reflecting on the deeper ‘why’ questions.”

Sounds like wise advice to me.

2. Hands-on thinking

“Thinking by doing” isn't just a catchphrase; it's an approach I use everyday for problem-solving, both at work and in my personal life. Whenever I find myself stuck in a mental loop, starting a practical task related to the challenge always helps. The mental puzzle becomes tangible and I’m able to visualise its parts, move things around or undo, to shape it in real-time.

Whether it's sketching, wireframing, or jotting down a plan, concrete action often illuminates the path forward. This is true in my design practice; where often times having an idea is only half of the equation, and what I imagined doesn’t always translate elegantly into the screen — not until I create it in context, not until I try different solutions within a real canvas. Tangible ‘trial and error’ is particularly effective for complex problems where multiple factors are at play.

In “Thinkertoys” Michael Michalko describes in great detail a myriad of creative-thinking techniques. One of them is called “Think Bubbles”, a graphic exercise for organising our thoughts, by creating a physical picture of the way our mind blueprints a challenge:

“Once you project your blurred mental images onto paper, the process of idea evolution can really begin.”

This technique allows us to see relationships between different parts of the problem and mimics the way our mind clusters concepts; making the information easier to absorb. Engaging with different parts of a challenge, without losing the big picture, can yield unexpected insights.

3. Writing for mental clarity

Expanding on the theme of “doing”; writing is an externalised form of thinking that often leads to new insights; much like the previous example, it helps our mind to process information — it forces us to structure our thoughts, to choose words, and to construct arguments.

Writing down ideas allows us to return to an insight and look at it from a different perspective, perhaps with accumulated knowledge, to connect dots we hadn’t seen before. Conversely, that same distance may bring an updated lens and steer us into discarding an idea. In this scenario, writing helps us to think critically, as captured in “How to think more effectively”:

“We can note how much more work we need to do, to let someone else understand what we are still only meaning to say, rather than actually saying.”

I often feel I know more about a topic after writing, because I was able to articulate it in the process. By materialising our thoughts we crystallise knowledge, we move from vagueness into concrete sentences; and once we do, we hear them in a different frequency. When we write, we’re forced to ask ourselves questions like: What do I really mean by x? Why do I think this is true? Which analogies can I draw from it? How can I explain it? So in a way, writing becomes an extension of our brain.

4. Bypassing mental blocks

Sometimes our brains need a break. An effective way to distract our minds from actively solving a problem, is to engage in mundane or routine tasks. Tasks that can serve as a “cognitive pause”, such as going for a walk or driving down the highway... When we’re in autopilot, without overwhelming distraction, our brains can wander.

We’ve all heard about the "aha moments" and brilliant ideas born in the shower; a place where not much is going on inside our minds, and where we’re not expected to be thinking. This is when half-baked thoughts reach our consciousness and turn into insights. The neuroscientist Marcus Raichle explains:

“The parts of the brain that come ‘online’ when you’re doing nothing are called the Default Mode Network.”

Even though we’ve subtracted the ‘background noise’ our brains never really turn off. Allowing our mind to be distracted by giving it space to wander, goes a long way.

5. Chasing novelty

Our brains are wired to pay attention to new stimuli and a ‘change of scenery’ is a known trick to help our minds loosen up. New experiences can disrupt our patterns of thought and bring in a new perspective. Creating opportunities for awe and novelty such as traveling, being in nature, visiting an exhibition, attending a workshop on an unfamiliar subject; provide new input, which is turn can awaken our brain with novel ideas. Brent Crane explains why, in the article “For a more creative brain, travel”:

“Creativity is related to neuroplasticity, or how the brain is wired. Neural pathways are influenced by environment and habit, meaning they’re also sensitive to change: New sounds, smells (…) and sights, spark different synapses in the brain and may have the potential to revitalise the mind.”

Being away from the distractions of our daily lives can help our mind lower its guard. This is why for some of us a long enough flight becomes fertile soil for reflection, making space for the unsettling questions, or those new ideas which we never have “time” for.

6. Diluting mental silos

The richest ideas often come from the intersection of ’seemingly disconnected fields’; an example is behavioural economics, as the blend of psychology and economics. This cross-pollination of ideas is one definition of creativity. Enriching our own reservoir of knowledge beyond our domain, is key when broadening our thinking. After all, as Michael Michalko points out:

“Remember that everything new is just an addition or modification to something that already existed.”

The author explains why “manipulation is the brother of creativity” when introducing the brainstorming exercise SCAMPER, a checklist of idea-spurring questions by Alex Osborn and Bob Eberle, which allow us to find relationships between dissimilar things; to borrow aspects from a contrasting object or concept, substitute characteristics, modify or magnify certain parts, to generate new alternatives.

Looking out for patterns, processes or features from another subject, might translate or help to clarify our own. Keeping an open mind and constantly asking questions enables us to make new connections, thus transfer and apply insights in unexpected ways.

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Mastering our mind is not about completely shutting down distractions (would that be even possible in today’s world?). It’s about learning how to navigate and leverage those inputs, and call on new ones; for better, less passive thinking. It’s about intentionally returning to the basics, to feed our own imagination from time to time.

These habits aren’t mutually exclusive; you may find that strategising while train travelling solo is a great combination; I know I do. The goal is to take a step back and be intentional: from balancing action and strategy, to deliberately stimulating or distracting our mind — since our brains never really turn off, we might as well level the playing field.

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