I begin today with a warning: The following contains nudity.
But relax. While nudity is involved, we will ignore most body parts (except one) as I discuss the importance of taking a shower.
The body part I am talking about, the one most in need of that hot, pulsing water, is your brain.
Tell me this has not happened to you: You're in the shower, waking up, the day is ahead, the hot, steamy water is pushing all those relax buttons … and suddenly you're brain starts talking.
Ideas are streaming into the steam. Suddenly you have a great idea to solve a problem.
You are relaxed. You are lucid.
And you are very wet, which can lead to panic because you need to write down that great idea that popped into your soapy head.
The shower is my think tank. And it turns out I am not alone. And there is science to back me up.
I was searching online about showers and brainstorming and found a good article by Leo Widrich. He runs a media management agency in San Francisco and made it his mission to look into creativity.
He quotes Alice Flaherty, a neuroscientist who studies creativity. She explains that showers release a compound called dopamine — the more dopamine released the more creative we are.
The key is that the shower feels great and relaxes us. You also find ideas popping into brain if you are exercising … or even driving home from work.
Distraction … stepping away from problems … also helps.
So there you have it.
If you've got a problem, hit the shower.
And while you're in there, figure out how to take notes.
I’m Lonny Cain, and that’s my perspective.
