Many great thinkers have used walking to help them generate ideas, including Beethoven, Steve Jobs, and Aristotle. While all forms of exercise have been shown to activate the brain, walking is a proven creativity booster as well. Here are four good reasons for giving yourself permission to get up, move away from your computer, and start walking.
1. Increase your creativity and gain perspective
A 2014 Stanford University study of 176 participants found that more than two-thirds had an increase in creativity when walking. More research is necessary to explain how walking improves creativity and the Stanford authors speculate future studies will determine a complex pathway that extends from the physical act of walking to physiological changes to the cognitive control of imagination. Wow.
2. Communicate better and more productively
Not all walks have to be solitary. Invite a colleague to share a ‘walking meeting.’ You’ll have fewer interruptions away from phones and emails plus you can more easily brainstorm together.
3. Learn something new
Walking can be about clearing the mind and also be an opportunity to listen to a podcast or an audio book to gain new insights and useful knowledge.
4. Final bonus: stay healthy!
Now more of us are working remotely, we have greater freedom to get up from our desks and take a walk to start our days or in between meetings. Regularly taking 30-minute walks is a major way to support our bodies and minds.
The bottom line: Walk when you can, where you can. You’ll think better, be more productive, learn more, and live longer!
Further Reading
Harvard Business Review Article: How to Do Walking Meetings Right – Russell Clayton, Christopher
Thomas, and Jack Smothers
On Looking: A Walker’s Guide to the Art of Observation – Andrea Horowitz
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