[ckaygusu]

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henri_Poincar%C3%A9

> He never spent a long time on a problem since he believed that the subconscious would continue working on the problem while he consciously worked on another problem.

This is definitely a thing. Intellectual labor just isn't physical labor.

[bandyaboot]

I can’t even count the number of times that I’ve had to give up on a problem after banging away at it for an afternoon only to solve it in 20 mins the next morning. Almost never fails.

[zachthewf]

Taking a break and going for a run sometimes does this for me as well.

[oceanghost]

Most of the best ideas I've had in my career were in the shower before work.

The problem is making that a regular occurrence.

[gampleman]

I use to think that they should pay me 1/4 of my hourly rate at work because I could get quite distracted and work quite ineffectually, 3/4 for each hour slept as that is where most of the processing happened, and a 10x bonus for the morning shower where all the hard problems of work would be solved in instantaneous heureka moments.

[dunefox]

> The problem is making that a regular occurrence.

Ideally you shower every two days or so.

[fernandotakai]

ha! my wife once asked why i was speaking english while showering.

i told her that 1. i can only think in english when thinking about work and 2. saying stuff out loud helps me organize my thoughts and this is specially easy while showering because i don't really have to concentrate.

[a9h74j]

The new WFS trend -- Work From Shower.

[vl]

There is even a story in one of the productivity books about how one of the most productive employees requested shower to be installed in his office since he was most productive in the shower.

[dx034]

That's why I like going for a run or cycling at lunch time. It always helps me to process ideas. And doing it after work means I'll get that great idea in the evening when I don't want to work for the company anymore. I believe doing sports at lunch time helps the company at least as much as it helps me.

[hindsightbias]

Steve Jobs had a theory that hot water on the blood vessels in the back of the neck increased blood flow to the brain.

[sq_]

For me it's often in the shower after work. Which is a pain because then I've gotta remember them until I get out and then find a way to remember them until the next day.

[dorgo]

sometimes I wake up and know the solution.

[greenhatman]

But it only happens after spending a lot of time on a problem. You can also swap showering for walking.

[jonchurch_]

Interestingly, that point is listed in the wiki article under his "shortcomings". (According to Édouard Toulouse, his contemporary and a psychologist who wrote a book about Poincaré)