Slow Your Roll To Gain Productivity
FRESH CONTENT
The Age of Information, having everything at our fingertips and immediate gratification, has directly impacted how we do business and operate during the workday. The power and availability of information has had many positive outcomes for the business world and productivity, as tasks can be accomplished quicker and communication is faster and more versatile. The high volume of information makes it easier to reach decisions faster and react with better knowledge.
But, the convenience comes with a price. Younger Americans are feeling more isolated than ever, and the number of people with anxiety or depression is on the rise. Constant communication and being "plugged in" 24-7 is causing a mental health crisis among young people who use social media. Torrance creativity scores have been steadily declining for the past three decades.
Is there a solution to boosting creativity and improving productivity?
The Importance of Self-Reflection
Boredom is the catalyst for invention and creativity. Today's kids and teens have so many options for entertainment that simply sitting around and "being bored" or using their imaginations to keep themselves occupied is rare.
Self-reflection can be a transformative process that converts the information you know into something different – putting pieces together to create ideas. Quiet reflection allows us to make sense of our experiences, critically evaluate them, and consider if we could have done better by doing something differently. It's the process of learning through experience. To get the most out of experiential learning, it's important to ensure that you carve out time to quietly self-evaluate and consider different approaches.
This doesn't mean picking apart what you actually did to look for errors, but rather considering, with hindsight of the outcome, iterations of different decisions and actions (or inaction – doing nothing is still doing something).
Does Creativity Involve Less Knowing and More Intuition?
Children may seem to have a higher level of creativity than adults simply because they know less. They have less of an idea of what's impossible, so their dreams and ideas aren't as limited by practicalities. Boosting your creativity involves shutting down some of the restraints of what's possible. Quiet self-reflection involves letting your mind wander, and when you actively shut down the part of your mind that boxes in your creativity with reasons why something won't work, you're better able to come up with innovative solutions to your problems or consider different approaches if you encounter a similar situation in the future.
Fighting against distractions in the age of information can be difficult. It's easy to have information and solutions at your fingertips. But, when things are easy, sometimes our creativity can wane.
Entrepreneurs Depend on Creativity
If you've taken that leap to become an entrepreneur, then you know that you aren't on an easy path. You know that your venture requires hard work and your dreams require a lot of practical planning. Successful entrepreneurs depend on their creativity, from the initial idea to how they accomplish each phase of business development.
Creativity relies on quiet and free thought. If you find yourself caught up in the minutiae of your entrepreneurial venture, consider taking time to unplug, slow your roll, and let your mind wander. You can think critically or consider different scenarios.
Bottom Line
If you're overwhelmed by the constant barrage of electronic information in your daily life, it may be time to unplug. Taking time completely to yourself and living in your own mind can help you feel more centered, more creative, and ultimately refreshed and more productive.