Have you ever experienced a mental state when ideas seem to just flow? Can you recall what you did to cause yourself to be in that situation?
In 2001 Ronald Friedman and Jens Forster at the University of Maryland, USA, decided to carry out an investigation to understand the different state of mind in a now classic experiment. Two groups of students were asked to play a simple game where they had to solve a maze puzzle by drawing a line with a pencil from the middle of the maze to the exit without taking the pencil off the page - you probably did these when you were a child. The goal was to help a cartoon mouse escape, but there was a twist. Friedman and Forster gave one group a version of the maze that had a tasty-looking piece of cheese in front of a mouse hole at the exit. This is known as a positive or approach orientated puzzle. The other group of students did a version where the cheese had been replaced by an intimidating-looking owl that was poised to swoop and kill the mouse with its talons at any moment. This is known as a negative or avoidance-orientated puzzle, and it primes the mind’s threat avoidance system.
The mazes were simple to do and all of the students easily completed them in a couple of minutes or less. But the effects of doing so on the students’ outlooks on life were radically different. When the students took creativity tests, those who’d avoided the owl did 50 per cent worse than those who’d helped the mouse find the cheese. This was because the cartoon owl had triggered the students’ avoidance systems, which had, in turn, closed down their minds and left them with a lingering fear of failure and an enhanced sense of caution and vigilance. This state of mind had reduced their flexibility, narrowed down their options and hamstrung their creativity. This outlook couldn’t have been more different from that of those students who’d helped the mouse find the cheese. They were happy to experiment, were more carefree and open to new experiences and far less cautious. The experience had opened their minds. Think about the significance of this experiment. If you do something in a fearful, negative or overly driven way, then you will activate the mind’s avoidance system. This will narrow the mind and reduce your flexibility.
Mindfulness is a state of calm, open-hearted, non-judgmental awareness. It's a state of mind where you are paying full attention to whatever is happening in the present moment, rather than living in the past or worrying about the future.
Your capacity to concentrate is improved by engaging in mindfulness or meditation practices. If you've noticed, attaining the majority of the results you've achieved has been greatly influenced by your ability to stay focused on your goal. In a previous newsletter, I discussed how I approach design briefs by thinking about the challenge for a while. I use the same approach when facing other professional or personal challenges. For me, I occasionally get to practice mindfulness or meditation. There's a popular slang in Nigeria "problem no dey finish" :) I get to practice mindfulness while lying down alone, strolling alone or praying alone. Dr Danny Penman a qualified meditation teacher shared various approach to practicing mindfulness meditation in his book 'Mindfulness for Creativity' he has other materials too, you can check them out.
Thinking is not a problem. Thinking while being unaware that you are thinking can become a major problem. Experiments have shown that mindfulness boosts creativity largely by enhancing divergent thinking, many of the qualities associated with convergent thinking are also enhanced by mindfulness. such as working memory, clarity of thought and mental fortitude, resilience and courage are all boosted by mindfulness.
To enhance creativity and problem solving you need to cultivate three skills. Firstly, you need a calm, open and disciplined mind that can gather and integrate new ideas and information. Secondly, you need to notice the new ideas created by your mind and to realise their significance. And thirdly, you need the courage to follow your ideas wherever they should lead and the resilience to cope with the inevitable setbacks and criticism from others.
It's crucial to be present in the moment. Recognize your current situation, stay focused, and make the most of it.
A Riddle [share your response in the comment section]
A man and his son were involved in a car crash. The man died. The boy was rushed to hospital where the surgeon cried out: ‘That is my son!’ Who is the surgeon?
I will next share on getting in the state of flow.
Yes! I can’t attest to this personally. Mindfulness meditation has been the key to releasing my fears and stuck thought patterns allowing me to see a clear conscious path ahead. And mindfully and consciously facing those fears to dismantle them .Great background info and insights. With kindness,
Rae
The puzzle at the end is interesting because you can't definitively identify who the surgeon is or, more precisely, what their gender is. My first thought was to say that the surgeon was the boy's mother, but you can't be 100% certain. Or it could be a grandparent, maybe.