[MUSIC]
Let's kick things off with a little
experiment.
Those were approximately ten
seconds of silence.
Raise your hand if you felt some
sort of discomfort.
Or maybe, you even thought I forgot
my presentation.
Silence is awkward, but
what is silence, really?
Silence is the absence of sound,
the absence of stimuli.
But from the moment we wake up,
we're bombarded with noise.
Alarms, pings, music, chatter,
all of which make silence feel so
uncomfortable, almost
like something's missing.
For many of us, as soon as we're
silent and alone with our thoughts,
we start to feel out of sync, or
maybe even anxious, but
it's in these moments where we find
the opportunity for reflection,
clarity, and even creativity.
Perhaps it's society's pressure to
do more and more every day,
to almost optimize our lives that
has us feeling so uncomfortable,
but what are we optimizing for?
Optimization means to make as
perfect, effective, or
functional as possible, but
we've somehow convinced ourselves
that silence and
downtime get in the way of that.
More often than not,
we try to avoid moments of downtime
because there's always something
else we could or should be doing.
Here Stanford, I've especially felt
the pressure to do more and
more every day,
to schedule more coffee chats, go
to more career events, and attend
all of our social activities.
I'm guessing some of you might feel
the same way [LAUGH] I'm so
addicted to the dopamine hit I
get from checking something off my
to-do-list that I kid you not have
written.
Make to-do list as the first item
so that I can check it off
immediately and
feel like I got something done.
As if everything we had here
at Stanford wasn't enough,
I even signed up to give
a ten-minute speech about
why we should deoptimize our lives.
>> [LAUGH] >> In my previous life
as an undergrad, I studied studied
cognitive neuroscience because I
was fascinated by understanding how
the brain worked and
leveraging those insights to
improve our lives.
So naturally, as I embarked
on a journey of de optimization,
I turned to my scientific roots.
Here's what I discovered, studies
show that every time our brain
switches to attention to something
new, it burns up oxygenated glucose
at a faster rate than usual.
This is the same glucose that our
brain needs to learn new things,
remember stuff, and remain focused.
So when you have a day filled with
back-to-back tasks and
no downtime in-between, your brain
will run through its fuel rapidly,
hindering its ability to create.
Our brains need moments of downtime
to thrive.
Downtime is unstructured time with
no targeted goal and
no targeted focus of attention.
Sorry to break it to you, but
scrolling on Instagram,
listening to music, or
watching Netflix, now consider it
downtime because while doing so
you have a focus of attention.
Surprisingly, even meditation isn't
considered downtime because while
meditating you have a specific goal
in mind.
Downtime is when your brain
intentionally has no intention.
Those leisurely Sunday afternoons
when you're just sitting
on your couch daydreaming,
without a set agenda,
your mind is free to wander,
making unexpected connections and
giving rise to new ideas.
Well, it might seem that we're
doing nothing during downtime,
our brain is actually quite active.
We're processing information,
we're thinking
about both the past and the future.
We're developing a sense of self
and we're thinking about
the perspectives of others.
Downtime enables a process
called integration.
Integration is what connects
the dots between the bits and
pieces of information that are just
swirling up around in your brain.
I'll give you a sneak peek
as to what my brain
sounds like during downtime.
Mom's mad at me again,
she thinks I stole her shirt,
I definitely didn't.
Another rainy day in Palo Alto
today, I need to unpack for
Tahoe this weekend.
Is that where my mom's shirt is and
the carry-on I haven't
unpacked yet?
I'm kind of craving some sushi.
>> [LAUGH] >> As you can see,
my brain thinks in very
non-linear ways during downtime.
But it's integration that takes
this non-linear thinking and
transforms it into aha moments.
Did anyone catch what
happened there?
I was able to find where my mom's
shirt was without actively
looking for it.
These aha moments or
epiphanies can range from as small
as remembering something to
ideas that are much more impactful.
For example, I came up with
an initiative that led to 20%
growth at the startup I was working
at while getting a haircut.
I wasn't on my phone,
I wasn't thinking about anything
particularly, it just came to me,
what were you doing, the last time
you had a sudden realization?
Really, take a moment to
think about.
Isaac Newton,
he developed the foundations for
the theory of gravity while sitting
under a tree daydreaming.
JK Rowling,
Harry Potter came to her while she
gazed out the window on her train
commute back from work.
Even Steve Jobs, a notorious
workaholic, was known for
taking long breaks and long walks
to boost his creative potential.
While not all of us will become
the next Isaac Newton, I do hope
that many of us change the world.
Tackling climate change,
enhancing healthcare accessibility,
and solving the complex problems
that our world has demands that we
innovate.
And to do so,
we have to tap into our creativity.
Looking ahead,
AI becomes increasingly better at
analytical tasks,
creativity will become more and
more important in the workplace.
It's creativity that allows us to
look at problems from different
angles and solve those problems in
more efficient and effective ways.
So, how do you actually de-optimize
your life to create moments
of downtime and
how do you leverage that downtime
to boost your creativity?
First, start small.
You know those 15-20 minutes
in-between meetings?
I used to hate those,
way too long to bear doing nothing,
but way too short to get anything
productive done?
Well, they're prime downtime.
Just see what happens when
you don't pick up your phone and
don't try to squeeze something
in between.
It might feel a little awkward at
first, but I promise,
it'll be worth it.
Second, find what works for you.
For me, I love to take walks, so
in between meetings,
I'll get up and take a stroll.
My boyfriend, he loves to clean,
which is a win for me, but he also
does great thinking while doing so.
The point here is to find
activities that you can incorporate
into your routine.
Go on walks, sit in the park,
gaze out the window while
drinking some tea.
If you struggle with literally
doing nothing,
experts also recommend mindless
tasks like vacuuming, organizing,
or even doodling.
Just remember that downtime
is only downtime when there's no
specific goal and
no specific target of attention.
I know what some of you
are thinking, you're way too busy
for downtime, you have way too many
commitments and
simply cannot afford to do nothing.
Well, it's those of us
that are busiest that
need downtime the most.
Here at Stanford,
we're all overachievers focusing on
over optimizing, but it's downtime,
that's not the enemy
of achievement,
it's the key to unlocking it.
Downtime is an essential
process for our brain, but
it's also something we can practice
and develop.
Ironically, as children,
we were masters of downtime.
Do you remember how immense the
world felt when we were younger?
My childhood was a kaleidoscope of
fantasy, and adventure, and
time travel.
I would sit there for hours
contemplating why fruit tasted
sweeter in Columbia than in the US?
Or what it would feel like to be
an astronaut?
I would create stories to explain
the things that I didn't
understand, and
I would create lists of superpowers
that I wish I had.
If you could create a list of
superpowers that could change our
world today,
don't you think it would be worth
15 minutes of your time?
Downtime is what can enable Inner
child's curiosity to dream up
what our world could look like.
Together, let's de-optimize our
lives to create moments
of downtime,
knowing that it's in these moments
where creativity can flourish.
And the best part is,
we can literally start today,
right after this, and we need
absolutely nothing to do so.
Thank you. >> [APPLAUSE]
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