This post was on HN six months ago[1] but I'm glad it was posted again because I missed it on the first go-around.
The "Is there something I can do to get myself into the right mental state?" section resonated with me, particularly where the author argues that specific environments can get you in the right mental state for different kinds of work.
The author references a study from the Journal of Consumer Research[2] that explores the relationship between ceiling height and thought processing. The gist of the study is higher ceilings help stimulate creative thinking processes while lower ceilings help stimulate thinking in terms of item-specific data.
I'm studying/cramming for finals now, so I'll test this hypothesis by studying for a memorization-heavy exam in a low-ceiling classroom while encouraging my classmates to study in a high-ceiling study hall :)
Awesome way of rephrasing time management. Every time I recommend meditation I get the same answer, that it is a waste of time but if we talk in terms of mind management this would be an investment to the mind.
Well, when you consider that most people (at least in my experience) likely don't have actual exposure to it or an understanding of what it is and its intended practical benefits, that's a fairly common point of view. It's often not malicious, it's just that meditation is so often lumped in with alternative-medicine-type highly-suspect concepts.
I think as North Americans we've let it become all too common to associate 'turning off' with vegetating in front of a screen of some sort. We're likely guilty of this here around HN as well -- instead of actually taking the time to disconnect and replenish ourselves through meditation or whatever activity suits your brain & body's fancy.
The "Is there something I can do to get myself into the right mental state?" section resonated with me, particularly where the author argues that specific environments can get you in the right mental state for different kinds of work.
The author references a study from the Journal of Consumer Research[2] that explores the relationship between ceiling height and thought processing. The gist of the study is higher ceilings help stimulate creative thinking processes while lower ceilings help stimulate thinking in terms of item-specific data.
I'm studying/cramming for finals now, so I'll test this hypothesis by studying for a memorization-heavy exam in a low-ceiling classroom while encouraging my classmates to study in a high-ceiling study hall :)
[1] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4661747 [2] http://www.csom.umn.edu/assets/71190.pdf