The process of innovation is much more complex and mysterious than we like to admit.
Creative possibilities are often crammed into neat mental models so logic-based, historically-fixed thinkers can bask in the illusion of progress. The problem with this approach is that we limit our potential and fall astray from a true path of creation. To expand and deepen the creative process, one must be able to let go of all beliefs and assumptions that have piled over time. Zen masters call this the Beginner’s Mind. Children have it, Einstein had it, and anyone can develop it.
Innovators use the artistic passion and flow to overcome the dynamic conditions and uncertainties that enrich the innovation process. They feel for taste, touch, and intuition, moving their consciousness beyond empty words and static images. They use the greatest, most underutilized, scientific instrument ever invented: the human body.
So, how can we use the body to become better thinkers?
I offer one simple suggestion: listen generously to the breath everyday. Pay attention to the air space inside and around you. As a daily exercise, this gives a real feeling to the sensations and emotional cues (aka emotional intelligence) that arise throughout the body. Meditation and Yoga are also great ways to enable the body to become more conscious.
Compelling ideas are meant to grow and evolve in their own terms, not to be subjected to a one-insight-at-a-time way of thinking. Our job is to listen and collaborate with an open mind. Conscious breathing teaches us to openly receive and let go and observe the creative process as it unfolds.