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(…) the time will come when every house even will have not only its sleeping-rooms, and dining-room, and talking-room or parlor, but its thinking-room also, and the architects will put it into their plans. Let it be furnished and ornamented with whatever conduces to serious and creative thought.” — Henry D. Thoreau, A Yankee in Canada, The Portable Thoreau, p. 252

Every house still does not have a thinking-room as Thoreau suggested in the above quote. I think they should, and this post will give you some steps to add one to yours. Don’t worry! You won’t need to tear walls down or spend thousands of dollars to add a thinking-room to your house. But you will have to think (no pun intended) a little about it.

What is a thinking-room and why should I have one? Read more »

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Jazz musicians who were asked to improvise showed dramatically decreased activity in the part of the brain responsible for evaluating one’s own actions. At the same time, the part of the brain responsible for “self-initiated” thought was highly active.

So what?

O.K., this may not be groundbreaking for many, but it does emphasize the importance of letting go of limiting thoughts. If these jazz musicians were worried that they might get stuck in the middle of a song, they would indeed get stuck instead of improvising successfully. Read more »

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I was told by my 8th grade teacher that all the most intelligent people in the world carried personal journals everywhere they went. I didn’t believe her. Perhaps the fact that keeping a journal for the entire semester was a class requisite made me somewhat of a skeptic.

Some months ago I found out she was right. Well, partially right. I learned that Leonardo Da Vinci kept his notes on loose pages, only bound after his death. I also read of some scientist who used index cards for hers. In fact, I’d say most creative people, not to say Newton, Einstein, and the like, keep some kind of journal. This is not to say that journal-keeping is the cause of genius-level creativity or intelligence, but there does seem to be some correlation between journal-keeping and creativity.

So, I decided I should keep one too. I admit I haven’t been the most avid journal-keeper of all time, but I’m already seeing some benefits which I’d like to share with you: Read more »

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It is commonly believed that I.Q. tests are the best measurement for identifying a genius. Many scientists have said that if you have a score of more than 140, you’re a genius.

Many other people, including myself, hold ‘genius’ to be much more than a number. But let’s face it: Some people solve problems more easily than others, or socialize more naturally. Do these people necessarily have higher-than-normal I.Q. scores? No. What these people do have is a different way of looking at the world.

They look at the world with a curious mind, as opposed to a stale mind. A genius is someone who achieves greatness through positive action that is the result of a burning curiosity of the unknown. In simpler terms, I propose that a genius seeks continually to improve in the following three main areas: Read more »

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