You know the feeling. You’re relaxed, enjoying the warmth of a soothing bath or hot shower, when ‘ping,’ an idea or a string of fabulous ideas suddenly pop into your head. Fully formed “downloads” from out of nowhere that don’t feel like regular thoughts.
And now we know why.
Researchers have discovered that “aha” moments stem from a different part of the brain.
In 2014, cognitive psychologist Scott Barry Kaufman interviewed 4,000 people across eight countries and found that 72% experienced new ideas and ‘eureka’ moments in the shower. Even the word “eureka” originated in a bathtub. Archimedes, the ancient Greek scholar, shouted “Eureka! Eureka!” as he stepped into a bath and watched the water level rise. Archimedes’ Principal was born – the physical law of buoyancy.
Embrace Your Bathroom Brilliance
If you want to think like inventors, movie-makers, songwriters, and other creative types, you are going to have to get your gear off.
Many songwriters have penned big hits in the smallest room in the house. Sir Paul McCartney admits he’s a big fan of finishing songs on the toilet. In 2015, he told Q Magazine he likes the solitude, “The trick is to go off on your own and finish it. Go into the toilet – toilets are good.”
In 2008, singer Mariah Carey told the British television program ‘This Morning’ that one of her biggest hits came to her in the bathroom, “I was in the studio and someone was telling me about this film Hero with Dustin Hoffman in it. I took a walk to the loo and when I came back I had this idea for a song, and that was what then became Hero.”
And in 2014, country singer Kenny Rogers told the ‘Today’ show that Lionel Ritchie penned his hit song ‘ in the lavatory, “We start recording, I finish the first verse and I’m sitting looking at the lyric sheets and there’s not a second verse. I said to the engineer, ‘Where’s Lionel?’ He replied, ‘He’s in the toilet writing the second verse’.”
A Symphony in B Wet
Ludwig van Beethoven is considered one of the most influential composers in the history of classical music. During his 56 years, he wrote nine symphonies, 32 sonatas, five concertos, and an opera, many of them in his bathroom.
According to Beethoven’s biographer, Anton Felix Schindler, bathing played a vital role in the German composer’s creative process, “Washing and bathing were among the most pressing necessities of Beethoven’s life…he would stand in great deshabille at his washstand and pour large pitchers of water over his hands, bellowing up and down the scale or sometimes humming loudly to himself. Then he would stride around his room with rolling or staring eyes, jot something down, then resume his pouring of water and loud singing!”
Creative Super Soakers
American film director, writer, actor, comedian, and musician Woody Allen is another celeb who believes in shower power. In Eric Lax’s book, “Conversations with Woody Allen“, Allen describes his penchant for creative cleanses, “If I go up and take a shower, it’s a big help. So I sometimes take extra showers. The shower is particularly good in cold weather. This sounds so silly, but I’ll be working dressed as I am, and I’ll want to get into the shower for a creative stint…I’ll stand there with steaming hot water coming down for thirty minutes, forty-five minutes, just thinking out ideas and working on plot.”
Aaron Sorkin is another certified super soaker. The hugely successful playwright, screenwriter, and film director believes in the power of showers so much that he had one installed in his office. He told Bloomberg Television he uses it daily, “I take six to eight showers a day. It has nothing to do with germs. If I’m writing and it’s not going well, I start again. I take a shower, put on different clothes, feel refreshed, and start again.”
Nintendo video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto didn’t use a shower, toilet, or 18th-century water pitcher to create Donkey Kong. He came up with the idea while luxuriating in Nintendo’s company bathtub. In a 2016 interview (translated in “Wired”), Miyamoto said, “There was a water boiler that was used to make the hanafuda (traditional Japanese playing cards that Nintendo manufactures), and the water from this boiler was also used for a bathtub…at night when nobody was around, you could hang out there for a long time. It totally saved me. It was really effective at letting me put my ideas in order.”
Aha Moments Are Real
For hundreds of years, aha moments and flashes of inspiration were considered part of normal brain function, nothing out of the ordinary. That was until 2014, when Drexel University cognitive scientist John Kounios, and his Northwestern colleague Mark Beeman, made an astonishing discovery. They noticed a surge in electrical brain activity at the moment of eureka.
The pair successfully identified the area of the brain where ‘aha’ moments originate. Using EEG and fMRI technology, Kounios and Beeman found the trigger point in the right temporal lobe, just above the right ear. The Times of London dubbed it the brain’s ‘E-Spot’ (named for Eureka).
In their book, “The Eureka Factor“, Kounios and Beeman explain that the brain ‘blinks’ milliseconds before an epiphany. The visual cortex essentially shuts down, enabling us to tap into our subconscious and give rise to a solution or idea. According to Beeman, “For thousands of years, people have said that insight feels different from more straightforward problem-solving. We believe this is the first research showing that distinct computational and neural mechanisms lead to these breakthrough moments.”
Looking for Ideas? Tap into Your E-Spot
From Archimedes and Beethoven to Aaron Sorkin and Woody Allen, great minds have been tapping into their ‘E-Spot’ for generations. The quiet, calm, and solitude of the bathroom provides the perfect conditions for insights to manifest.
Could you be harbouring a million-dollar idea? Here are some tips for activating “aha” moments:
- The first one is a no-brainer – take a shower! If Aaron Sorkin’s idea of showering six to eight times a day doesn’t appeal, be sure to make the most of your daily shower. Take your time, and relax. You never know when your brain might ‘blink’ and pop a brilliant idea into your head.
- If you have a bathtub, use it. Schedule some ‘me time’ over the weekend or after work. Relax and see what ideas come to mind.
- Don’t force your thoughts. By using the brain analytically, you are less likely to trigger an “aha” moment. Think of your bathroom time as chill time and allow the eureka moments to happen naturally.
- Flashes of insight don’t only occur in the bathroom. How often have you awoken with the solution to a problem? Sleeping, walking, travelling on public transport, and even zoning-out while performing a repetitive task can all trigger your ‘E-Spot.’
- Practice meditation and sleep well. Being relaxed helps free headspace and allows creative ideas to flow. Check out our resources page for relaxation ideas.
- Be sure to keep a notepad and pen handy at all times. You never know when inspiration will strike.
