When and where do you think?

Fred Jacobs had an excellent post on Bill Gates' well publicized "Think Week".

This definitely got me thinking again on this topic...

When do you do your best thinking?  Come on.  I mean really put thought into an issue, problem, opportunity, strategy, product line, competitor that you or your business is facing?

I personally get some of my best thoughts early in the morning at the office or during my triathlon training.  Being outdoors, running or biking for a few hours really gets my mind in tune.

Bill Gates is able to get away for a week, twice a year, to think.  I don't believe most of us have this type of time or freedom, but how can you not afford to get away for a few hours or a day to get sharp and focused?

Think it through.  Discuss it.  Make it happen. 

You, your company, your employees and your customers deserve and demand your best.

_____
tags:  thinking | strategy | bill gates | productivity

Comments

[Terry Storch]

Great post, and very important. I get away with my management team 2 times a year for thinking, planning, stategizing, etc. I also get away with the Executive team once a year for the exact same thing, plus some recreation. This is very important for me!

But, I find it just as important to pull away from everything and have true think time. The Brain waves that stimulate thinking and creativity (Theta Waves) function best under complete relaxation and no stress. That is why you are at your best while training. We all need to find our happy places and retreat there regularly to think and plan.

Thanks for the post, great stuff.

[paulbenger]

Great post. In my previous job I used to take 5 minutes 'thinking time' every day at 3pm. I'd turn off the phone, shut the door, look out of the window & think...very productive.

Now I get it when & where I can. The secret is...avoid distractions.

BTW John Maxwell has a thinking chair.

[K. Todd Storch]

Paul,

Good idea and you are right on...distractions are the killer of good thought and work!

Todd

[Fred]

Hello Todd!

My best thinking time? When I'm not thinking at all.

When I have a problem, any type of problem, I learn about it. I learn what the problem really is. If I already have a solution to solve it doing this process, everything is then perfect and had gone well (it's rare). Otherwise, I stop to think about it. I start to work on another non-related thing; I go outside. Then, eventually, a hint will show up in my mind; a track to follow to resolve my problem. My unconsciousness has then talked.

Its how I work: I feed my unconsciousness with the problem then I let him think about it, waiting for a hint. Sometime the process can get some hours, days even months to work; everything depend of the problem to be solved.

Salutations,

Fred

[Rosa Say]

Aloha Todd, I think ...
Terry is onto something when he says, "The brain waves that stimulate thinking and creativity (Theta Waves) function best under complete relaxation and no stress. We all need to find our happy places and retreat there regularly to think and plan."

I'm like you: most of my best thinking is done in those morning hours I'm on my run (which actually is very relaxing and stress-free for me), so much so that I always have an index card and pencil with me now so I can stop and write stuff down.

My second choice is something I've trained myself to do over the years: I seem to engage in very productive thinking right after I talk story with people, during which time I ask them more questions than offer my own opinion. You can dig down deep inside your own thoughts when you are able to push away those first instincts sometimes.

Then again, I'm a big believer in instinct and gut feelings ... okay, I have to go for a run and think about this some more.
Aloha a hui hou,
Rosa

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