Research backs up her experience: One study1 tasked participants with copying phone numbers from a directory for 15 minutes to stimulate boredom; then they asked those individuals to come up with different uses for a pair of cups—a task that would give them a chance to display their creativity.
The results? The “bored” group came up with significantly more creative ideas than the control group. Researchers theorized that participants would daydream during the passive, boring task, which ultimately led to more creativity.
That’s why Rubin recommends letting your mind wander and tap into your subconscious for at least a few minutes per day, whether you’re on a walk, at a museum, or, yep, in the shower. “I don’t know that I would have a brilliant insight if I walked around listening to a podcast,” she notes. “As much as I love listening to podcasts, I would have been thinking about whatever the podcast was about.”
So if you’re hoping to spark some new, original thoughts, you might want to avoid any sort of mental stimulation. “You need this open-searching time in order for new ideas to bubble up,” she adds. “This is why people get ideas in the shower or in the middle of the night—it’s a downtime where then the brain creates its own fun.”
