Artists have known this for a long time, as have entrepreneurs and scientists: being close to water stimulates our creativity in ways nothing else does.
We have a fundamental evolutionary connection to water. It’s the matrix of life and of our bodies.
For example, Lin-Manuel Miranda attributes the idea of creating Hamilton to being away on a summer holiday on a beach in Mexico and able to read Ron Chernow’s extensive Alexander Hamilton biography.
Ernest Hemingway wrote his finest novel, The Old Man and the Sea, in 1951 when he lived in Cayo Blanco, Cuba. That was the work that turned him into a celebrity.
After being burned out by the demands of a corporate job in New York City, entrepreneur Mike Coughlin, moved back with his parents in Cape Cod. While spending time by the ocean every day, he came up with the idea of opening his company, The Blue Ocean Life, which helps provide access to surf therapy for people who are mentally, physically or socially disadvantaged.
Of course, being far away from the worries and stresses of daily life helps.
I set out to investigate if there’s something else about being close to water that prompts the mind to make associations or solve problems in new ways.
I found that there is a connection with being close to water that is worth examining.
Scientist describes “Blue Mind” as a mildly meditative state characterized by calm, peacefulness, unity, and a sense of general happiness and satisfaction with life in the moment.
This state is triggered when we are near water. The brain is naturally attracted to water because it has a soothing effect, reducing cortisol levels (the stress hormone) and enhancing the production of dopamine, serotonin, and oxytocin, which are the chemicals responsible for feelings of happiness and well-being.
Water uniquely inspires creative thinking. The rhythmic sound of waves, the vastness of the ocean, and the play of light on water can stimulate the brain in ways that a typical office environment cannot.
Studies show that being near water increases blood flow to the brain, enhancing cognitive functions such as problem-solving and creativity.
Changing our environment and exposing ourselves to natural elements activate our brain’s default mode network, leading to daydreaming and free-flowing thoughts essential for creative thinking.
Here are a couple of mind-blowing proven facts!
1. When you put yourself at the edge of the water, your field of vision is simplified and so is your auditory spectrum.
2. When you get into the water, the hundreds of muscles that have been holding you in standing position no longer need to do that work, and the brain regions that were taking care of that get a break.
The good news is that you don’t have to be close to the ocean, a river or a pond. Getting into a bathtub full of water has a very similar effect on your brain. Sitting by a functioning urban fountain works well too.
While I hope you can be close to water this summer (or always, really) even the rhythmic sound of waves in meditation tracks can make your brain reap some of the benefits of getting into the Blue Mind. The app myNOISE is free and offers a bunch of different water sounds to choose from.
