We have all experienced it. How all solutions to great problems occur in the shower or just before falling asleep. How the obvious solution finally presents itself. Why? Why not when we are at work or actively try to solve the problem? No matter the effort we put in it seems impossible. And then suddenly out of nowhere.

I believe it’s due to the lack of boredom. We constantly strive to occupy every moment with something to do.

We listen to podcasts when we walk. We play games on our phones when we ride the buss. We scroll social media when we have 3 seconds to spare in the elevator.

There simply is no room left for our brain to do creative thinking. Creativity comes from boredom. When we have nothing to occupy us the brain get free reigns and start processing the backlog we have stored up. And when do we finally let our brains free? In the shower where we can’t play with our phone. Or right before falling asleep when we finally put away all distractions.

The next time you find yourself facing a difficult problem, go for a walk. Without podcasts, without music, without your phone. See what happens.