What is “insight” anyway?
Here’s a good working definition: “an idea that represents an original and fruitful way of understanding an issue or approaching a problem.” (Thank you, Leonard Mlodinow.)
Want to test your own creative abilities? Take this Remote Associates Test, which asks you to consider three words and come up with the fourth that connects them all.
Maybe you, like me, have envied people who can take a ton of information, or an issue, and quickly make sense of it in a novel way. And maybe you’ve beaten yourself up a bit for not performing as well as you wish on this (that’s certainly how I felt about the Remote Associates Test!).
There are simple things we can do to foster conditions that lead to flashes of insight.
This short video talks about what goes on in our brains when we’re trying to be more insightful. (Hint: Too many times we give up too soon!)
Try out the three tips for creating physical and mental states that welcome insights.
I like what pastor and motivational speaker Dr. Robert Schuller has to say: “Spectacular achievement is always preceded by unspectacular preparation.”