🧨 Breaking Through A Wall
It is likely that you have a job (or a hobby) where creative thinking is vital. But what happens when you get stuck while working through a problem? Whether staring at a blank page not knowing what to write or trying to a tough decision on how to market a new product, these mental impasses affect us all.
It turns out that brain function experts have uncovered something interesting when studying these these mental impasses: people who can actively “think about their thinking” breakthrough these stalemates quicker by switching their mode of thinking and effectively activating other areas of the brain. This is also the reason why so many new ideas occur to us in the shower or on the treadmill: the subconscious is trying new ways of approaching the problem even when our active attention is elsewhere. Active focus can often be the problem - we get stuck using one tool and cannot switch contexts. Back in LL Vol. 3, I shared about the prefrontal cortex which is responsible for much of our brain’s heavy lifting. Activating this powerful yet limited part of the brain depletes energy quickly. If we apply strong focus and can’t make enough neural connections to solve the puzzle, exhaustion sets in.
So how can we approach these sticky situations? David Rock, author of Your Brain at Work, offers a useful framework called ARIA which stands for Awareness, Reflections, Insight, and Action. Here’s how it works:
During the Awareness phase, we recognize the impasse and hold it in our mind “lightly”. Instead of trying to work through the problem, attempt to simplify it down to a single sentence or core idea.
In Reflection, keep the problem in mind but focus on how you thinking instead of the actual solution itself. This seems a little hokey and weird but this meta-thought is a way that our brains begin making new connections.
Soon you will hopefully reach Insight stage where neurons fire together and suddenly the puzzle is solved. Energy is released and you start to feel good.
Action is the important step of taking the insight and then doing something with it. I partially feel like Rock needed this A to complete his acronym but yes, you shouldn’t just forget the answer you’ve worked hard to come up with.
So there you have it. Four steps to break through. Why not try using these techniques on this classic logic puzzle involving pirates and treasure 🏴☠️ ?