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Do You Get Your Best Ideas in the Shower?

Archimedes, the Great Greek mathematician, physicist, engineer and inventor had his 'Eureka' moment when he was in the Shower!

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Question added by Ali Ahmad SHRM-SCP , Group HR Performance Manager , FAMA Holdings Group
Date Posted: 2017/03/06
Ali Ahmad SHRM-SCP
by Ali Ahmad SHRM-SCP , Group HR Performance Manager , FAMA Holdings Group

"Your best ideas, those 'eureka moments' that can turn the world upside down, seldom come when you're juggling work emails, rushing to meet the5 pm deadline or straining to make your voice heard in a high-stress meeting..

My personal experience says that they often come when you're walking the dog, doing the dishes or just soaking in the bath!"

DR MD ANWAR HOSSAIN
by DR MD ANWAR HOSSAIN , Moderator , bayt.com

 

20 Reasons Why the Best Ideas Come in the Shower

20 Reasons Why the Best Ideas Come in the ShowerDuring the past 25 years, I’ve asked more than 10,000 people where and when they get their best ideas. I get all kinds of answers, but the one that has always fascinated me is “the shower” — maybe because I also get so many of my good ideas there.

 

And so, at the risk of overstating my case, I hereby offer you 20 reasons WHY the shower is so conducive to new ideas.

 

  1. Showering signals “a new day” or “new beginning.”
  2. You’re usually alone, with time to reflect.
  3. Interruptions are rare.
  4. The rush of water creates a kind of “white noise” that makes concentration easier.
  5. Shower stalls look like little incubation chambers.
  6. Water is associated with “contemplation” (i.e. sitting near a river, lake, or ocean.)
  7. Showering is a metaphor for “getting rid of the dirt” — the stuff that covers up what’s beneath.
  8. Showering is a ritual. Lots of creative people like to have little rituals to get their head in the right place.
  9. You can write your ideas on the walls with a water soluble pen.
  10. There’s not a lot of judgment or analysis going on in a shower.
  11. A hot shower opens the pores — and by extension, maybe the mind.
  12. Showering wakes up you. It makes you more alert.
  13. Showering is a relaxing and stress free experience. With nothing to stress about, your mind is free to roam new territories.
  14. If you shampoo, you’re massaging your head. That’s gotta be good.
  15. It’s hard to check your iphone or Blackberry in a shower.
  16. Albert Einstein also did his best thinking near a shower. (“Why is it I always get my best ideas while shaving?”)
  17. Water is associated with “flow.” Being in the “flow state” is often a precursor to creative thinking.
  18. There is no deliverable expected of you.
  19. If you shower with a friend, and he/she happens to be in a brainstorming mode, lots of great ideas get sparked.
  20. Showering is easy. Not a lot of thinking is required to make it happen, which frees your mind to think about other things.

Yusuf Shaahi
by Yusuf Shaahi , Training Manager , ABB

I love this question so much because I have all my great ideas when I am least expecting it (including the super bright ones in the shower)!

Nasir Mahmood Dar
by Nasir Mahmood Dar , Radar Operator - Tracker , Royal Bahraini Air Force

Thanks to invite.

Absolutely No.

Ahmed Mohamed Ayesh Sarkhi
by Ahmed Mohamed Ayesh Sarkhi , Shared Services Supervisor , Saudi Musheera Co. Ltd.

yes sometimes i got it there :)

 

Anita George
by Anita George , Project Manager , National Air Cargo Middle East FZE

I call them epiphany moments ... such clarity

It must have to do with all that hot water and steam ... clearly the foggy brain.

I almost jump out to jot it down ... taken to creating a lil ditty on repeat mode till I'm all squeaky clean and start jotting the ideas down.

Omar Saad Ibrahem Alhamadani
by Omar Saad Ibrahem Alhamadani , Snr. HR & Finance Officer , Sarri Zawetta Company

Thanks 

Hahahahaha

Yes, sometimes 

Regards 

Ninaa Myers
by Ninaa Myers , AVP - Marketing and PR , Orange Telecom

Oh yes I do (a lot actually)!!!

Ashraf E. Mahmoud (PhD)
by Ashraf E. Mahmoud (PhD) , University Lecturer, Freelancer Consultant and Trainer for Int'l Business & Banking TF. , FreeLancer

Thanks for invitation,

Maybe, but usually when I feel quite and relax in early morning.

Duncan Robertson
by Duncan Robertson , Strategy Consultant , Duncan Robertson Consultancy

*Sigh"

Archimedes was in the bath.  He would not have had that idea (displacement) in the shower. 

But yes, good ideas often pop into your head when you least expect it.  It's partly because you are not thinking about something else, so there is 'space' in your conscious inner dialogue for the idea to appear.

sehrish naseem
by sehrish naseem , Teacher of mathematics,english,physics and urdu , Fatima public school havelian

Oh yes, taking Shower means feeling relex or fresh. We are going towards starting a new work.It just like a refreshment point, where we go for eating some food to satisfy our need. In shower we awake up and moved to new ideas because the mind is become relexed due to cold water shower. The brain parts are become alerts that what happened? It works perfectly and as everybody is a creator, So new ideas comes in mind,As we can say that after dark night, a bright day comes with new hopes.

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