Programmers' creativity and innovation have become a very important part of enterprise development, so we now increasingly focus on creating an environment that can promote innovative behavior.
Now we can see that some workplaces have set up billiards and sandbags, painted funny colorful decorations on the walls, and some even install entertainment facilities like water features, all aimed at inspiring employees' ideas and unlocking their potential.
I'm not a huge fan of these gimmicks, but that said, some research now shows that we can improve our creativity through some very simple changes.
1. Adjust the lighting
In 2013, a group of German researchers found that light affects our creativity. Volunteers in the experiment were asked to complete a series of creative tasks under various lighting conditions, from 150 lux (dim) to 1500 lux (bright).
The results showed that people are most likely to produce creative work when working under dim light. In fact, we can set similarly dim lighting to simulate such conditions.
We believe that dim lighting allows our thoughts to fly freely, which is often a core factor in creativity.
2. Improve noisy surroundings
A truth that is now well known is that open-plan work environments are actually a disaster for productivity. In fact, by studying Gensler, an architectural design firm, we found that such environments do immeasurable damage to both productivity and creativity.
What I want to say is that with the increasing prevalence of flexible working, many people have begun to choose comfortable office environments for themselves, such as cafés, which are pleasant and quiet, and quite nice.
If you aspire to innovate in your work, the influence of environmental factors is crucial. A study at the University of Illinois showed that the typical background noise of a café can appropriately allow our creative thinking to flourish.
The typical noise level in a café is about 70 decibels, and this is the perfect level for creative thinking.
Moreover, if you don't like working in cafés, you can replicate the same noise level at home. Researchers have developed a service called Coffitivity that can make your computer provide the same noise level as a café.
3. Stay away from caffeine
Speaking of coffee, many people say they can no longer live without it. However, relevant research shows that caffeine actually harms our creative impulse.
It is well known that caffeine can refresh the mind and suppress sleep. That seems like a good thing. But research has found that caffeine disrupts our mind-wandering, forces the brain to focus on the task at hand, and confines our thoughts. Therefore, although the noise in a café is beneficial to us, the coffee itself may hinder the burst of creativity.
4. The answer is at the bottom of the bottle
If you want a drink, beer might be better. A Danish company has invented a beer that claims to help solve problems, called The Problem Solver, which is said to enhance creativity.
They believe that a blood alcohol level of 0.075% is the perfect breeding ground for creativity, so the purpose of their product is to provide users with the corresponding alcohol. The side of each bottle has instructions to help us determine the optimal amount to drink.
For example, a 60 kg person may only need half a bottle to reach the perfect level, while an 85 kg person might have to gulp down the whole bottle.
5. Daydreaming and creativity
A research team from the University of Central Lancashire found that we often perform creative tasks better when we are bored.
They asked the first group of participants to copy numbers from a phone book, then complete a creative test. The control group skipped the boring copying task entirely. The comparison found that the first group performed significantly better than the control group.
This is because when we feel bored, we are actually sending a signal to the brain that something is not quite right, and then our brain subconsciously begins to look for creative solutions.
The above 5 methods are simple and low-cost, and you can definitely apply them in your workplace to make your work more favored by the goddess of creativity.
Now we can see that some workplaces have set up billiards and sandbags, painted funny colorful decorations on the walls, and some even install entertainment facilities like water features, all aimed at inspiring employees' ideas and unlocking their potential.
I'm not a huge fan of these gimmicks, but that said, some research now shows that we can improve our creativity through some very simple changes.
1. Adjust the lighting
In 2013, a group of German researchers found that light affects our creativity. Volunteers in the experiment were asked to complete a series of creative tasks under various lighting conditions, from 150 lux (dim) to 1500 lux (bright).
The results showed that people are most likely to produce creative work when working under dim light. In fact, we can set similarly dim lighting to simulate such conditions.
We believe that dim lighting allows our thoughts to fly freely, which is often a core factor in creativity.
2. Improve noisy surroundings
A truth that is now well known is that open-plan work environments are actually a disaster for productivity. In fact, by studying Gensler, an architectural design firm, we found that such environments do immeasurable damage to both productivity and creativity.
What I want to say is that with the increasing prevalence of flexible working, many people have begun to choose comfortable office environments for themselves, such as cafés, which are pleasant and quiet, and quite nice.
If you aspire to innovate in your work, the influence of environmental factors is crucial. A study at the University of Illinois showed that the typical background noise of a café can appropriately allow our creative thinking to flourish.
The typical noise level in a café is about 70 decibels, and this is the perfect level for creative thinking.
Moreover, if you don't like working in cafés, you can replicate the same noise level at home. Researchers have developed a service called Coffitivity that can make your computer provide the same noise level as a café.
3. Stay away from caffeine
Speaking of coffee, many people say they can no longer live without it. However, relevant research shows that caffeine actually harms our creative impulse.
It is well known that caffeine can refresh the mind and suppress sleep. That seems like a good thing. But research has found that caffeine disrupts our mind-wandering, forces the brain to focus on the task at hand, and confines our thoughts. Therefore, although the noise in a café is beneficial to us, the coffee itself may hinder the burst of creativity.
4. The answer is at the bottom of the bottle
If you want a drink, beer might be better. A Danish company has invented a beer that claims to help solve problems, called The Problem Solver, which is said to enhance creativity.
They believe that a blood alcohol level of 0.075% is the perfect breeding ground for creativity, so the purpose of their product is to provide users with the corresponding alcohol. The side of each bottle has instructions to help us determine the optimal amount to drink.
For example, a 60 kg person may only need half a bottle to reach the perfect level, while an 85 kg person might have to gulp down the whole bottle.
5. Daydreaming and creativity
A research team from the University of Central Lancashire found that we often perform creative tasks better when we are bored.
They asked the first group of participants to copy numbers from a phone book, then complete a creative test. The control group skipped the boring copying task entirely. The comparison found that the first group performed significantly better than the control group.
This is because when we feel bored, we are actually sending a signal to the brain that something is not quite right, and then our brain subconsciously begins to look for creative solutions.
The above 5 methods are simple and low-cost, and you can definitely apply them in your workplace to make your work more favored by the goddess of creativity.
Source: http://www.topthink.com/topic/10971.html