thinking outside of the box

Sometimes a change of scenery is exactly what you need. Whether you need inspiration for a new product or you’re stuck on a project. Why not take a break or even learn a thing or two from another industry?

Take a break

When you feel stuck or need inspiration, you must take a break from your current industry. Einstein regularly took a break from physics. He ventured into realms of science like music, art, and mathematics. This way he could get new ideas and implement them in his own research.

Take a bath

Other times you have to completely do nothing. Just relax and “clear your mind”. Now a major disclaimer: clearing your mind doesn’t mean scrolling on your phone. Because if you scroll on an app on your phone, you’re still injecting your brain with new information. Archimedes took a bath and suddenly he had his eureka moment. He saw that the water moved upwards as he was sitting down. This eventually led to the law of Archimedes.

Copy

By staying curious and discovering how certain mechanisms work in different industries, you might benefit from it. One example is the fast food drive-through which has made all our lives easier. This system was actually copied from the race car pit stops. Link

Have breakfast

Bill Bowerman was the co-founder of Nike. He was a coach for the United States athletic team. Bowerman was obsessed with perfecting runner shoes so that the runners could run faster. His current challenge was finding a sole that had enough grip. One day Bowerman was having breakfast with his wife and she made him waffles. Suddenly it dawned on him that the pattern of a waffle might provide a good grip. Moreover, the waffle maker could melt all the materials together. This led to the waffle shoe which is still sold by Nike today. Link