The Power of Shower Time
How warm showers produce increased levels of creativity.
It was 9 am on a Monday as I set foot in the shower. It was just like any other shower I’d taken. I turned on the hot water, waited for it to warm up, and stood underneath the water.
Something felt different on this day, though.
It was not like every other shower I’d taken since birth.
I found the same benefits I’d always had in the shower which was clear thinking, a crazy amount of hidden creativity and present moment awareness.
What was different about this shower was that I became consciously aware that these things only happened in this beautiful way during shower time.
Here’s a list of cool things that happened during shower time looking back:
- I thought about blogging which led me to do it
- I imagined key decisions like quitting my job and dumping a toxic girlfriend which led me to eventually make those decisions
- I came up with all of my most read blog posts in the shower
- I reflected on who I used to be which made me eventually change during non-shower-time
These major life events that led to who I am today, strangely, all started in the shower.
It sounds so ridiculous and I never realized this until that Monday at 9 am when I was in the shower.
Creativity in the shower
Of all the good things that happen in the shower, the one that is the most interesting is our creativity. In my case, I struggle to come up with ideas and things to write about. It’s rare that I have good ideas.
Most of the time my brain is going a hundred miles an hour and trying to find ways to survive. In the shower, that feeling is nowhere to be found. My need to survive and focus on everything that is wrong with my life disappears for a few minutes. The longer I’m in the shower, the more my mind seems to relax and go on this creative journey that leads to my best ideas.
I have so many creative moments in the shower that I’ve honestly considered the need for a whiteboard on the wall of the shower so I can capture everything I come up with. It’s as though everything I have read and experienced seems to make sense in the shower. I’m able to take completely unrelated ideas and piece them together like a jigsaw that only has ten pieces.
The ease of thinking in the shower is remarkable and in that state, it is possible to be ten times more creative than you normally are.
I’m not the only one (the science)
A quick look down the rabbit hole that is Google suggests I’m not alone. Shower time has many benefits and what I’ve experienced is not unique to me.
The frustrating part is that it has taken me so long to realize the power of shower time.
There have been many studies into what makes shower time particularly good for creativity. One of the more publicized ones by Alice Flaherty suggests that creativity in the shower happens because we are relaxed and this increases the levels of dopamine in our bodies. Great ideas are more likely to happen in this relaxed environment full of dopamine.
Your mind struggles to be creative when it’s not relaxed.
Jonah Lehrer also adds that when we have increased dopamine levels because we’re relaxed, we’re less distracted and our focus turns inwards.
He sums up what I’ve experienced in the shower nicely here:
‘For many people, it’s the most relaxing part of the day.’
It’s not until we’re being massaged by warm water, unable to check our e-mail, that we’re finally able to hear the quiet voices in the backs of our heads telling us about the insight.
The answers have been there all along–we just weren’t listening.”
Harness your shower time
Not all the hacks you need to do your best work are hard to find.
Having warm showers is an excellent way to unlock your creativity and find ideas that will lead to your biggest breakthroughs.
Next time you can’t think of what to say or have no ideas, try having a warm shower. Ten minutes, not too hot, with the bathroom door closed, and with no distractions is the best way.
You’re only one shower away from success.