Thinking at work.
It might be harder than expected…
Who would have thought that thinking at work actually requires conscious effort, right? I am not talking about your everyday tasks and ability to do them amazingly. I am talking about situations when you need to brainstorm and come up with new ideas or strategies. When you already have a functioning business, sometimes it can take a lot of work to stop and simply give yourself enough time to think.
Business owners, managers, and decision-makers often have meetings about new ideas, but what happens when you come out of that meeting? Does it ever feel like you step into a quagmire of tasks and routines? As a result, we end up with unprocessed information because we are so concentrated on the present.
Since I was little, my dad told me that to think of something, you must think about it. Seems very obvious, but you will be shocked at how little of that a regular business owner actually does.
As much as delivering results is a priority, people need time to uncover problems, brainstorm, and come up with solutions. That is why you need to give yourself and your team the support and the resources to think. Encourage yourself and everyone you work with to literally book time in their calendars for thinking.
Remember that no person is the same. Some think better in groups, others alone, locked up in a wooden cabin with a log fire. Not saying you need to pay for their holiday to come up with ideas, but assuring them that thinking time is important and that it will never be perceived as “looks like you are not doing anything productive”.
I personally find the most productive time for thinking is when I am walking. Being creative, it is important for me to see the kaleidoscope of life around me to develop my own pattern eventually.
What is your most productive way of thinking?
