The importance of mental and physical wellbeing has never been so stark, and it’s also been the case that many people have discovered new hobbies (or rediscovered old ones) during lockdown, whether it be baking, cycling, singing, yoga or painting.
As we ease out of lockdown, and return to some sense of normality, many people will be continuing to work from home, and will require ways of boosting their creativity, concentration and readiness for the day in the morning.
Employers will be looking at the best ways of improving work/life balance, enhancing productivity and getting the most out of their business and staff. But how can this be achieved?
In many cases, it can be something deceptively but brilliantly simple. Here, we take a look at some of the things that can be done to focus the mind and allow people to think smarter.
Jot down ideas before they escape
On average, an adult human being has around 50,000 thoughts a day and even trying to remember 100 of those is nigh-on impossible, particularly if they occurred right at the start of the day. While it’s entirely normal to forget most of the thoughts you have on a daily basis, as your brain acts out its filtering process to get to the most important information we need to function, there could be nuggets of gold that are escaping as a result.
You might think ‘oh yeah, I’ll remember that later’, but nine times out of ten you won’t. You’ll get distracted by other things. So it’s really important that you jot your great ideas down as they come to you, so you have something tangible to turn to at a later date, when looking to put that great idea into action.
Not all great ideas will be practicable or useful, but some definitely will. You don’t need to write a whole essay, just jot down the most salient points in a way that will make sense to you. You can either do this on your phone or in an email sent to yourself.
The best creative ideas will often come when your brain is in relaxed mode, such as first thing in the morning, last thing at night, while you’re daydreaming or zoning out in the shower.
Often, our brains are fresher in the morning, so this may be the time when your most likely to have a brainwave. It may even be worth your while setting aside a ten-minute window every morning to have a little mental brainstorm and get those seeds of creativity committed to paper – or your phone’s notes section.
You should then review these ideas at a later point in the week, perhaps even discussing them with colleagues, friends or your partner, to flesh them out and see if they are workable. You will often know from the feedback whether you’re onto something or barking up completely the wrong tree.
Then again, don’t completely dismiss them even if the feedback isn’t great. After all, many of the greatest ideas in history were laughed out of the room at one point or another.
Work out, meditate, eat well, bake and listen to music
As anyone with young kids will tell you, the morning PE lessons with Joe Wicks were an absolute godsend during the height of lockdown, and there is a huge amount of strong, reliable data to suggest there is a close connection with good mental health and a well-functioning brain and the amount of exercise you do.
Working out in the morning is a great way of freeing up your mind, and focusing your thoughts. You don’t need to go crazy – some yoga poses, a quick workout video, or ten minutes on the exercise bike could do the trick.
Equally, walking, running and cycling are all great ways of giving your brain space to think, and are often the times at which you will have your most productive and creative ideas. Here, again, it’s important to note them down before you forget them.
An early morning run, walk, cycle or even swim can really help to set you up for the day and have a hugely revitalising effect on your whole body, including your brain.
In addition, it’s important to eat well – with a good, healthy breakfast also likely to set you on the right path, and improve your concentration levels for the day ahead, in turn boosting your creativity and improving your mood. Eggs, oatmeal, porridge, berries, nuts and Greek yoghurt are all frequently recommended as highly nutritious and beneficial foodstuffs to eat for breakfast, with various pieces of research suggesting that eating the right things in the morning has a positive effect on enhancing memory, attention, the speed of processing information, reasoning, learning, verbal abilities and creativity.
What’s more, meditation is another excellent way of gathering your thoughts, allowing your brain to breathe, and keeping relaxed all at the same time. Meditation helps to clear your mind of all the things you shouldn’t be worrying and stressing about so you can focus on the things that do matter.
Similarly, doing something which is in itself creative, such as baking, writing, drawing or listening to music (and being inspired by the creativity in the songs you listen to), can spark the sort of creative ideas that could improve your life, job or business.
Take a shower to wake yourself up
A shower in the morning is a great way to stimulate your senses, kickstart your brain into gear and make it clear to your body that sleep is over and now it’s time to work. A shower in itself can help you to fully wake up by removing you from your slumber and shocking you into the rhythm of daily life.
It is a place of solitude and contemplation, a place where it’s just you and your thoughts, and a place where that genius idea might just come to you first thing in the morning.
As we all work from home, the temptation might be to shower much later in the day, as you don’t need to look the part for business meetings or the like, but the revitalising, stimulating effect of a shower (even more so a short, sharp, cold one) shouldn’t be underestimated.
Below are some tips from Oh Fabulous Me
A little bit about Oh Fabulous Me…
Oh Fabulous Me is an aspirational, positive platform for anyone seeking to be a better version of themselves than they were yesterday. Those of us continually striving to stay healthy, inspired and motivated into chasing the very best of us, while spreading some positivity & joy along the way! It's a non-judgemental, safe space where all are most welcome to contribute! Progress over perfection.
Here are 3 top tips:
1. Stop hitting the snooze button!
It’s an obvious one but you’d be surprised how many people do it! To be your most productive you should aim to rise at around the same time each morning.
2. Don’t look at your phone!
Most people check their phones first before getting out of bed. This is a BIG mistake. Your phone has a lot of potential stress triggers, such as emails, news notifications, your bank account balance etc. Someone always wants your attention yesterday! This is a sure way of elevating your cortisol level before you’ve even raised your head off the pillow! The idea is to maintain the sense of calm you woke up with for as long as possible!
3. Drink a glass of water upon waking
The six to eight hours of recommended nightly sleep is a long period to go without any water consumption and, as the brain tissue is 76% water it means your brain is operating on 'low fuel'. By drinking a glass when you wake up, you immediately rehydrate your body and brain.
These are just some of the many activities that could get the creative part of your brain going in the morning, while also improving your life by making your healthier, happier and more in control. Here at Kings Group, we are an estate and letting agent working across East London, North London, Hertfordshire and Essex. All our offices are now open from 9am to 6pm (Monday-Friday) and from 9:30am to 4pm on Saturday, adhering to our Covid-19 policy.
