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Study finds walking improves creativity (2014)

news.stanford.edu

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Re: Study finds walking improves creativity (2014)

#51

Post by powersnail »

spurgu wrote: post #42
pixelmonkey wrote: post #28

Relatedly, I’ve tried to reduce my habit of listening to podcasts on long walks. I didn’t realize (until way too late) that this habit was stealing creative time from my brain. Podcasts flip my brain into “passive media consumer” mode during what were otherwise my most intellectually creative minutes and hours, and nonfiction/business/tech podcasts also fool my ego into thinking that the podcast listening time is “pr…

Glad that you got out of it! I am baffled by the amount of people people walking/running around with headphones, blasting music (or something else), never made any sense to me. I'd rather consume distracting/stimulating stuff within the comforts of white walls while leaving the mother nature surroundings to consumption with open eyes.

I guess that depends on where you walk.

In mother nature's embrace, I prefer to walk with my senses open. Especially when I was in Virginia, I love walking on the trails. I could hear birds and insects, see trees and grasses, and sniff the fresh hearty aroma of the luxuriant ecosystem. It was pleasant to open up myself to the nature.

Now that I live in a city, during my jog, I see vehicles, hear engines and leaf blowers, and smell gasoline, pot, and alcohol. No thanks. I'd rather escape to 18 century music, so I can forget about the grim reality for 40 minutes.

Re: Study finds walking improves creativity (2014)

#52

Post by hyperpallium2 »

pixelmonkey wrote: post #28

Relatedly, I’ve tried to reduce my habit of listening to podcasts on long walks. I didn’t realize (until way too late) that this habit was stealing creative time from my brain. Podcasts flip my brain into “passive media consumer” mode during what were otherwise my most intellectually creative minutes and hours, and nonfiction/business/tech podcasts also fool my ego into thinking that the podcast listening time is “pr…

The Top Idea in Your Mind http://www.paulgraham.com/top.html

Re: Study finds walking improves creativity (2014)

#53

Post by sbehlasp »

Not only walking improves creativity it boosts your memory and brain power. [https://www.facebook.com/ScienceNaturePage/videos/1947581662...]. Undoubtedly, should be close to nature. There has been number of evidences, the closer you stay around nature and physically active more chances you stay fit and healthier.

Re: Study finds walking improves creativity (2014)

#54

Post by 02020202 »

i see this is from 2014 but still, this concept is as old as the written word. i discovered it on my own during my school years where i observed that when i walk and try to learn something from a book or recite/summarize what i have learnt, walking helped tremendously. especially with things i had to memorize word by word, like poems for recitals.

anyway, i am a physically active person, but only last year i have added daily walks(5km+) into my schedule. i heard somewhere that humans should walk about two hours a day in total. so i am catching up :)

listening to podcasts while walking is great learning tool. not listening to anything is also great time for thinking things through. whether it is solving problems, making plans or just philosophying about life, it's the best time to do that.

and in the context of this scamdemic, gyms have been closed for many months now so walking(and now running as the weather is warming up), this was my only physical activity to keep me sane.

lastly, it is a great tool to discover your own city and nature.

Re: Study finds walking improves creativity (2014)

#55

Post by kumaranv »

pixelmonkey wrote: post #28

Relatedly, I’ve tried to reduce my habit of listening to podcasts on long walks. I didn’t realize (until way too late) that this habit was stealing creative time from my brain. Podcasts flip my brain into “passive media consumer” mode during what were otherwise my most intellectually creative minutes and hours, and nonfiction/business/tech podcasts also fool my ego into thinking that the podcast listening time is “pr…

Woow. There's a study proving it. Walking is the best option to me whenever I have to do something new. I keep thinking about it to get a better solution. I will be able to think about it without much distraction.

Re: Study finds walking improves creativity (2014)

#56

Post by alexf95 »

sbehlasp wrote: post #53

Not only walking improves creativity it boosts your memory and brain power. [ https://www.facebook.com/ScienceNaturePage/videos/1947581662... ]. Undoubtedly, should be close to nature. There has been number of evidences, the closer you stay around nature and physically active more chances you stay fit and healthier.

>the closer you stay around nature

Basically the further away you are from things that can distract your mind.

Re: Study finds walking improves creativity (2014)

#57

Post by ant6n »

kumaranv wrote: post #55
pixelmonkey wrote: post #28

Relatedly, I’ve tried to reduce my habit of listening to podcasts on long walks. I didn’t realize (until way too late) that this habit was stealing creative time from my brain. Podcasts flip my brain into “passive media consumer” mode during what were otherwise my most intellectually creative minutes and hours, and nonfiction/business/tech podcasts also fool my ego into thinking that the podcast listening time is “pr…

Woow. There's a study proving it. Walking is the best option to me whenever I have to do something new. I keep thinking about it to get a better solution. I will be able to think about it without much distraction.

Most people do their thinking on the pot... or at least they used to, before cell phones.

Re: Study finds walking improves creativity (2014)

#58

Post by PhillyG »

ant6n wrote: post #57
kumaranv wrote: post #55

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Woow. There's a study proving it. Walking is the best option to me whenever I have to do something new. I keep thinking about it to get a better solution. I will be able to think about it without much distraction.

Most people do their thinking on the pot... or at least they used to, before cell phones.

Partly for this reason, I've been considering starting an open source project to make a mobile-first Web based app/website development environment. That way, whenever I realise I'm distractedly using my phone (not just on the loo!) I can flip over to a different website and get back to figuring out whatever code has got me stumped recently :)

Re: Study finds walking improves creativity (2014)

#59

Post by Dowwie »

paperwasp42 wrote: post #6

Interesting to see this confirmed by a study. As a writer, I've always found walks to be immensely helpful when plotting. A brisk 30-min walk is usually enough to solve any tricky plot-holes I run into. Running has a similar, but immensely stronger, effect. Generally, I have near constant dialogue between my characters going on in the back of my head. When I run, it simply engulfs my mind, making it hard to concentra…

If you can think about work while running, you're jogging at best. Every plateau I hit with my running is the result of distraction and is broken through by being present, focusing on form and deliberately running. I've gained weight and haven't realized the full benefits of exercise because I've thought about work. It's at odds with achieving healthful living..

Re: Study finds walking improves creativity (2014)

#60

Post by todd8 »

At the T.J. Watson research center (headquarters of IBM Research which I had only a few occasions to visit), a number of my colleagues would always go for a stroll on the attractive grounds after lunch, and my favorite professor in grad school did the same thing.

When I was younger I was amoung a group of engineers that would go running during our lunch hour—though it was so hot in Texas during the summer that most of my thinking was about whether I was going to survive.

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