I borrowed the title of this blog post from the title of a book written by Ned Morgan that I am currently reading. In this post, I want to talk about nature and our environment in general including their importance for our creativity, wellbeing and energy recharging.
Two weeks ago, I was in the Lake District (Cumbria, north west of England). It’s a beautiful part of England and going there somehow always feels like returning home. I am not sure if it’s the landscape with hills and mountains around, the quietness, the endless space that you can see when you climb on top of a hill or the lakes and rivers flowing at its own pace that take me into a different kind of flow where ‘I just am’; enjoying being there and my thought processes slowing down. It’s probably a combination of all and as Ned Morgan argues in his book it’s the altitude that contributes to it too.
I read somewhere that being surrounded by man made things pushes us to think all the time. Urban places and busy cities want us to take in so much information and respond to noises, adverts and changing lights. We are constantly processing information, making decisions, problem solving and paying attention to other people. Sometimes just going up an escalator at a busy tube station sends you in a totally different world full of noises and flickering adverts. In contrast, nature just lets you be but in the first place you need to allow that to happen and consciously make time for it.
Being in nature recharges our energy resources. It is especially at times when there is so much to do that finding time for breaks in nature allows us to reconnect with our inner selves and come back to the work tasks with a better focus and clarity. Ned Morgan refers in his book also to several research studies showing that spending time in nature and altitude specifically is good for us. In one of the research studies he refers to, participants spent four days hiking in the wilderness without any technology devices. At the end of the trip, their performance on creative problem-solving increased by 50 percent. This is worth noting.
How many times did you want to be more creative or find a solution to a problem? And what did you do? How often did you stay longer in the office and put in extra hours to work out how to deal with it? Perhaps, the answers would arrive a lot faster if you would get out of the office and change the space.
Our working environment and the space where we live has an enormous impact on our wellbeing but also work productivity. You can probably reflect and think about a space that doesn’t work for you and when you stay there you can’t focus and your productivity is low. Equally, you can probably quite quickly say a number of places where you somehow feel more energy and motivation. Aim to pay attention to your working and living environment and make changes if needed to help you feel better. Sometimes small steps can bring extraordinary results.
As a part of your self-care, I would like to invite you to find some time and space in your week when you go to a park or once in a while, spend a weekend in the hills or mountains. If there’s a park near your work, take 20 minutes during your lunch break and have a walk there. It will motivate you even further to leave your desk! We were not made to sit all day at desks but move. When walking in the park, just observe what’s around you, take in the colours and be in the present moment. Pay attention to your surroundings - that also means not checking your phone or other devices.
When are you going for a walk?