How to Teach Unconscious Processing and Reflective Thinking to Get Great Ideas for Writing, Problem Solving, Decision Making, and Everything Else

It Just Came to Me: Why Teach Students to Use Reflection and Unconscious Processing to Get Ideas

Napoleon Hill (1883–1970) and Thomas Edison (1847–1931) were both proponents of harnessing the unconscious mind (aka subconscious mind) for idea generation and problem-solving. People have been using this type of thinking since before Archimedes (c. 287 BC–c.212 BC) had his breakthrough idea of buoyancy in the bathtub and exclaimed, “Eureka!”

I like the term Unconscious Processing to refer to the act of harnessing the unconscious mind. Idea Incubation, Creative Incubation, and Unconscious Idea Generation are similar terms. Reflective thinking is different but certainly related.

Have you ever given students “Advanced Notice” on an assignment? If you have, you intuitively understand this section already. Admittedly, we often give students advanced notice to allow them time to prepare or study for a test. However, we also give students advanced notice because we know the benefits of reflectively and unconsciously thinking about something over time. It looks something like this:

Teacher: “We have been studying this Earth Sciences unit for six weeks. It’s time to start thinking about what you wish to write about for your end-of-unit report. I will pass out the assignment directions in one week, and you must turn in an outline one week later.

Yes, many industrious students will do a specific review. However, all of them will put their reflective and unconscious mind to work even if they don’t plan on it. What am I talking about? These two quotes capture the heart of what I’m talking about:

1. 1. “The best time for planning a book is while you’re doing the dishes.” – Agatha Christie (1890–1976)
   2. “Never go to sleep without a request to your subconscious.” – Thomas Edison (1847–1931)

Where do great ideas come from? Be sure to read How Do Great Writers and Thinkers Get Their Ideas? How Should You Get Your Ideas? Many if not most great ideas and insights come from reflective thinking and unconscious processing. Although many people accept this as common wisdom, far fewer people intentionally try to develop this way of thinking as a life skill.

Suppose you are interested in developing this way of thinking as a skill. In that case, it helps to understand that most books on logical and rational thinking acknowledge the importance of harnessing this form of unintentional idea generation and problem-solving. Take a look!

1. The most important thing to know about the unconscious is that it’s terrific at solving certain kinds of problems that the conscious mind handles poorly if at all. – Mindware: Tools Smart Thinking (2015) by Richard E. Nisbett

 

2. The history of science and culture is filled with stories of how many of the greatest scientific and artistic discoveries occurred while the creator was not thinking about what he was working on, not consciously anyway—the daydreaming mode solved the problem for him, and the answer appeared suddenly as a stroke of insight. – The Organized Mind (2014) by Daniel Levitin

 

3. Every writer wonders where fictional ideas come from. The best of them often appear very abruptly after a period of imaginative drought. And, mysteriously, they really are good ideas, much superior to the contrivances of conscious invention. Many creative artists and scientists report that they don’t know where their best ideas came from and that they feel like mere copyists, transcribing the idea. – The Organized Mind (2014) by Daniel Levitin

Let’s explore some techniques and concepts. The more you grasp these ideas, the better you’ll help students harness unconscious processing and reflective thinking. Remember, whenever you give “advance notice,” you are likely asking your students to put their unconscious minds to work on the task.

The Edison Method: How to Use Unconscious Processing to Help Choose a Topic or Solve a Problem

I’ll call this the Edison Method after Thomas Edison’s (1847–1931) famous quote: “Never go to sleep without a request to your subconscious.” Let’s look at an example of what Thomas Edison is suggesting. Edison is not alone in this type of thinking.

Assignment: Students must choose a topic for a 5 or 10-page report on the Earth Sciences chapters they have read. This isn’t the type of writing assignment in which students should choose a topic in an instant. They will make a far better decision by thinking about it over time and using reflective thinking and unconscious processing.

How to Use Unconscious Processing to Help Choose a Topic: Review the Earth Sciences chapters each night before you go to bed. Before falling asleep, ask yourself: “What topic should I choose for my science report? What interests me most? What do I want to know more about? What might my outline look like? What might my finished report look like?”

This is a little abstract and even esoteric, so keeping your students’ grade level in mind is vital. Furthermore, this isn’t taught in a day. It’s instilled over time. In short, I encourage students to harness the power of reflective thinking and unconscious processing to come up with ideas. I don’t teach this as a creative skill. I teach it as an efficient, effective, practical, and goal-oriented task. Put simply, it’s good time management because this is where our best ideas come from.

Generating Great Ideas: It Just Came to Me or The Shower Effect

The term “Shower Effect” has become somewhat popular because so many people have stated that they get their best ideas in the shower. And no, these great ideas don’t come specifically from the shower. The shower represents any activity that is mundane, routine, or repetitive. These types of tasks do not require intense concentration, so our minds are free to wander and make new connections, leading to creative insights.

Here is the process in brief: Think about a problem or goal deeply and purposefully, and then go out and do something or take a nap. As you do things or nap, (1) pay attention to the ideas that pop into your mind, (2) record your ideas, and (3) save the good ideas.

Many of our best ideas occur when we are not actively searching for them. Encourage students to find inspiration during everyday activities that require minimal concentration. Here are some examples:

1. 1. Hiking in the mountains
   2. Taking out the trash
   3. Taking a shower
   4. Lying in bed before falling asleep
   5. Walking their dog
   6. Grocery shopping
   7. Stuck in traffic
   8. Cleaning their room
   9. Doing chores
   10. Gardening
   11. Exercising
   12. Running errands
   13. Eating breakfast
   14. Gazing at the stars
   15. Daydreaming in class

These activities can trigger creative thoughts without the pressure of forced brainstorming. As Agatha Christie once said, “The best time for planning a book is while you’re doing the dishes.”

Each of these activities keeps students busy without requiring intense focus. When faced with a difficult decision or problem, people are often advised to “sleep on it.” The next day, they frequently see things much clearer or have found a solution. This demonstrates that many great ideas emerge when we are relaxed and not under pressure to come up with something brilliant.

Capturing and Storing Ideas: Three Ways to Save Great Ideas for Later: Harness Quiet Times and Harvest a Wealth of Ideas

To harness these spontaneous ideas, students need strategies to capture them promptly and effectively. Here are three practical methods. In reality, a little goes a long way with these exercises. These exercises concretely teach students to think about their ideas as they walk around and to record novel or valuable ideas and insights.

1. Scratch It

Encourage students to carry a pen and paper to record their ideas. Provide them with a “Scratch It Idea Sheet” to jot down ideas as they come. Have them place a notepad by their bed for nighttime thoughts. They can then store these ideas in a personalized “Idea Bank”—a decorated box for their scraps of inspiration. Periodically, students can transfer these ideas to a computer, organizing them into categories or tables.

2. Record It

Voice recorders, available on many cell phones and MP3 players, are excellent tools for capturing ideas on the go. Students can later transcribe these recordings to paper or a computer.

3. Journal It

A “Writer’s Journal” is a valuable tool for students to explore and expand on their ideas without fear of evaluation. This safe space encourages the free flow of thoughts, helping students decide which ideas to develop into essays or stories.

What Kinds of Ideas Are Worth Saving?

Teaching students how to generate, capture, and store ideas empowers them to become creative and independent thinkers. Whether assigned a topic or given the freedom to choose their own, these strategies will help them overcome writer’s block and develop their writing skills.

Students can capture a variety of interesting ideas during their quiet times. Here are some examples of what they might want to save:

1. 1. Ideas of all sorts
   2. Interesting concepts
   3. Interesting words or phrases
   4. Colorful descriptions
   5. Things that happened
   6. Things people said
   7. Things they saw
   8. Ideas for stories
   9. Inventions
   10. Things they wonder about
   11. Things that seem impossible
   12. How they or someone else felt
   13. How to solve a problem
   14. Something strange
   15. Something incredible

Teachers can encourage students to develop this form of idea generation as a habit, or they can use this as an occasional activity to teach students something about great ideas and where they come from. We must be realistic about student interest levels, the likely benefits, and the time involved.

The Two Basic Types of Assignments: The Range of Freedom in Getting Ideas for Writing

The more freedom writers have in their writing assignments, the more students need to harness the power of unconscious processing and reflective thinking. Consider the two extremes:

1. Total Freedom
2. No Freedom

J. K. Rowling had total freedom in creating the ideas for the first Harry Potter book. After the success of that book, her ideas were largely limited by the audience, genre, and the storyline of the first book. In fact, to be free of those limitations, she used and continues to use a pseudonym for a different series of books.

The reality of writing is that all writers have limited freedom in choosing ideas if they at all care about what readers think. Since most student writing can be or will be read by others, students generally care about their ideas. In fact, I believe students care about their ideas above all else in writing as they view their ideas as a personal part of them.

Students experience different levels of freedom in writing. Sometimes, the requirements are specific and strict. Other times, the pressure and responsibility for finding ideas falls squarely on their shoulders. The process of choosing topics and ideas falls somewhere on this spectrum:

1. Students choose their topics and ideas from scratch.
2. Students follow directions, address a prompt, or there are correct and incorrect answers.

These two extremes require different skills and different ways of thinking. To be clear, I strongly recommend Pattern Based Writing: Quick & Easy Essay to build a foundation for getting ideas, organizing ideas, and creating clear and organized writing FAST. The program even includes two key strategies to help students stay on topic and follow the directions. The program is a true foundation and framework for teaching writing.