We know that people become more creative if they are more relaxed. We also know that people don’t feel very relaxed when they have to deal with technology and software. The relationship between man and machine continues to be a stressful one, and one of extreme mistrust. Hence, if you want to get the most out of your crowdsourcing software solutions, you need to make sure that your staff approach it with a relaxed frame of mind.
The Importance of Relaxation
Many scientific studies have shown that when people feel relaxed, they have a much wider focus. This, in turn, makes it easier for them to absorb large pieces of information. This also means, therefore, that it becomes easier to solve problems if people are relaxed.
One of the more interesting studies on this was completed in Hong Kong, where it was found that practicing Mindfulness Meditation could help to significant lower stress levels. This wasn’t particularly surprising, but what they hadn’t expected was that there was also a clear and positive boost o people’s creativity. As part of the research, a number of brain imaging studies were closely examined. People were asked to enter a meditative state, and people were asked to perform creative tasks. What was found was that the brain functioning of people who were meditating and people who were performing creatively, were virtually the same. The conclusion was that meditation put the brain of people into a creative state, something that should be taken aware of. Of course, various studies have already conclusively demonstrated that people obtain a broader mental awareness when they meditate and that this, in turn, makes it easier to general novel, new, and innovative ideas.
If you want to ensure your team and yourself become more relaxed and therefore also more creative, then you may want to consider a Mindfulness Meditation course. While some people may be a little bit resistant to this at first, it should be easy enough to convince them. Yes, meditation appears to be a bit airy-fairy, something that hippies did in communes in Goa while high on LSD, but the reality is that it is supported by scientific evidence to be beneficial to the mind and the body – and now to overall creativity.
Introducing Meditation in the Workplace
When you first introduce meditation in the workplace, you can almost guarantee that some people will come in very seriously, seeing themselves as experts because they have meditated before. At the same time, people will come in a bit giggle, believing it all to be a little bit silly. Your task here is to bring those two together. One way to achieve that is to have a brainstorming session before the meditation happens about what people’s expectations are. You could even use your idea management software for this, enabling people to remain anonymous and express their concerns, or their support, of the project. Being involved in a process makes people more receptive to it as well, and they will be more likely to take part and take it seriously – and thank you afterwards for the fantastic benefits meditation brings with it.