Mind Icebreakers: Three Ways to Squeeze Creative Juices and Come Up with Great Solutions at Work

By Moon Harper

May 07, 2024 04:49 AM EDT

Walk Meeting — (Photo : Unsplash/LinkedIn Sales Solutions )

Deborah Golden holds a unique position as the Chief Innovation Officer (CIO) at consulting firm Deloitte, where she tackles challenging problems. Often leveraging emerging technologies to enhance client offerings, she admits being good at seeing A to Z.

While Golden focuses on solving significant organizational challenges, every worker encounters obstacles in their daily tasks, even if they are limited to their specific responsibilities. With numerous tasks, it is common to feel stuck when addressing these issues.

If you are struggling to reduce expenses, optimize employee training, or create the next slide for your presentation, Golden shares some strategies for clearing your mind and refreshing your brain to generate solutions.

Try Going Outside for A "Walk Meeting"

One great way to stimulate creativity is by taking a break from our work screen. Golden recommends having a "walking meeting" just like what she had with a colleague, where they discussed challenges in the pharmaceutical industry. Golden proposed a walk to her colleague and spent half an hour outdoors without laptops or phones. She promptly noted the three points they had discussed when they returned.

Engaging in outdoor activities like walking meetings can revitalize the mind, according to a certified health and wellness coach, Marissa Vicario. Vicario shared with NBC News that fresh air and exercise can boost blood flow to the brain, leading to improved focus and clarity.

Vicario explains that as an entrepreneur, prioritizing self-care is vital, emphasizing that when individuals are not functioning at their best, it affects both their clients and their team's productivity. Vicario suggests incorporating specific moments into the day to take breaks and recharge.

Go Grab Something in 30 Seconds

Golden suggests that managers can begin meetings with an exercise to help clear their team's minds. She always incorporates an icebreaker at the start of every meeting, such as asking participants to grab something and explain why they chose it within 30 seconds.

This practice also encourages people to disconnect momentarily and increases blood flow to their brains and bodies, helping alleviate tension and facilitate problem-solving during those 30 minutes.

Try A One Minute, Five Minute and A 15-Minute Interval Refresh

While people often associate refreshing their brains with vacations or weekends, Golden suggests providing refreshers throughout the day is possible.

Golden encourages everyone to jot down ways to refresh their brain in one-minute, five-minute, and 15-minute intervals, such as calling a loved one, solving a crossword puzzle, going for a jog, or doing jumping jacks, or anything that allows for a brief disconnection from tasks and a fresh return to them.

According to Golden, her best ideas often arise when she is not tied to a desk but rather when outdoors, in the shower, on a plane, listening to music, or running. She advises creating similar opportunities for oneself during the workday and seeing how it can enhance productivity and creativity.