I’m writing this from far northern Wisconsin where the summer days are long, the morning air is cool and the nights are so brisk that in the deep woods you hear no insects at night. Only silence, occasionally interrupted by the call of a loon on the lake.
I’m with my 10 year old son Tiffany (Jimenez) and we’re doing the father son thing for a couple of days.
We’re sleeping in a tent and let’s just put it this way…. in the wee hours of the morning, if nature calls, a battle ensues.
A battle between the warmth of the sleeping bag and the discomfort of my bladder.
I have resigned myself to the reality that the bladder always wins in the end :^>
_riding.jpg "Tiffany (Jimenez)_riding")
All a boy really needs is a country road and a BIKE.
Yesterday Tiffany (Jimenez) and I went for a bike ride together on a country road and it reminded me of when I was 10 (such a short time ago) and I would go to Nana and Papa’s house in rural Virginia.
I would ride my bike up and down a road much like this one – nothing but the sound of my tires on the gravel, the sound of Max Creek rushing past rocks and tree stumps, birds chirping and air rushing through the trees.
That, and the feeling of wind streaming past your face as you speed down a hill and that special blend of terror and exhilaration, is surely all a ten year old boy ever needs.
There is no substitute for speed, for motion, for thrill that makes your heart race.
Yesterday we were riding together – boy and man and nature – and I had this very strange thought. A thought only a geek could think:
“There’s a bunch of techno-futurist types who predict that computers will become so advanced that someday we’ll just upload ourselves into cyberspace and live in virtual reality and be immortal.” I thought: “They actually believe they can simulate THIS?”
“This experience has no equal and never will. What a pile of horse puckey.”
I know. Only a geek. Eat your heart out, Ray Kurzweil.
But anyway I also had this other realization.
Jack Born my affiliate manager calls me up the other day and he says, “I was out running the other day and this idea came to me…” and he sketched out this truly ingenious marking methodology map that sort of summarizes everything I teach in this nifty little diagram.
We’re working on it now and sooner or later when it’s ready, we’ll show it to you.
The realization was: Jack was RUNNING when this idea came to him. He was physically in MOTION.
I remember one time Matt Furey saying he goes out and takes a walk every day and sorts his mind out.
I remember reading a book where Albert Einstein and mathematician Kurt Gödel would walk home from work at Princeton together every day and talk.
And I think, “Wow, doesn’t it seem like the most brilliant geniuses in every endeavor make it a habit to get out and WALK?”
So it should be with you.
You and I are more than just brains with a body. We are physical and spiritual beings. We’re not going to be uploading ourselves into cyberspace anytime soon, and sitting in a trance in front of your computer for 10-12 hours a day ain’t no recipe for inspiration either.
What could be better every day than setting aside time to unlock your inner genius?
He or she is in there right now, trying to crawl out. Why not take him for a walk every now and then?
Add it to your list of Extremely Effective Habits. Positive focus in the morning, and a walk. At least 10 or 20 minutes to go give your head a shake.
And yes, a fast bike ride down a country road, feeling the wind in your hair… yeah baby, that’s even better.
Perry Marshall
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About the Author
Perry Marshall has launched two revolutions in sales and marketing. In Pay-Per-Click advertising, he pioneered best practices and wrote the world's best selling book on Google advertising. And he's driven the 80/20 Principle deeper than any other author, creating a new movement in business.
He is referenced across the Internet and by Harvard Business Review, The New York Times, INC and Forbes Magazine.
35 Comments on “Feel the wind in your hair”
I know what you are talkin about! I don’t motorcycle, but I bicycle and when I go out on country roads and just go nowhere in particular, I free my mind so much. If I’m out bikin for a day, I come back home and dude I feel like I been out on a weeks vacation, ya know what I’m sayin?
You are a wonderful writer, Perry.
Hi Perry. This is off topic, but your maze is broken. I’ve tried for two days now to change my email preferences at Infusion, but there is a problem of some kind. My goal is to get on every mailing list you have. This proves that you are right about one very important thing: you are not perceived as a peddler but rather as the man on the mountain.
Hey Perry-
I just did the Father & Son thing w/my 13 yr old last week, for two days up in the Golan Heights. It’s such a great way to connect. Amazing what that break does to deepen our relationship.
BTW – you are the only other person I “know” who called his grandparents Nana and Papa.
Thanks for the breath of fresh air.
good advice, the best in a long time :)
You couldn’t have said it better Perry. Great post.
Perry,
There is scientific evidence to validate the fact that our brains work better when we are in motion … walking, running, etc.
John Medina, in his book Brain Rules – 12 Principles for Surviving and Thriving at Work, Home and School, he talks about how the brain evolved. Medina is molecular biologist whose passion is studying how the brain works.
The first rule is “Exercise boost brain power.”
So you are right on the money when you talk about getting ideas when you are in motion.
As an interest to all marketers is rule #10 – “Vision trumps all senses”. If you can deliver your message visually, you will make a much greater impact.
The book is well worth reading.
What’s really important here is the concept of escaping. To get away from business and enjoy the simple things in life. Leisure activities are what makes us happy, not the stress of having to make more money.
I came up with the seeds of my business idea while out running – that day and the daft idea are still vivid.
I gave up my ‘proper’ job earlier this year and I’m now turning over 15000GBP a month.
I no longer run cos it it killed my knees :-) but walking is wonderful.
The days I don’t walk (like today – its raining!) I feel tired and groggy and don’t get much done.
“We’re not going to be uploading ourselves into cyberspace anytime soon”
Not any time soon, not in our life times, but eventually (if we survive nuking ourselves). And it will be better than real life, because we will be able to make our wildest dreams come true whenever we want.
Good post.
Hey Perry,
Where in Wisconsin were you? Was it closer to Lake Superior than Lake Michigan or closer to the Minnesota border? I am just curious because Wisconsin offers alot of wilderness, especially the further north you go! Lots of lakes, rivers, streams, waterfalls, hills, fields and woods of course! I live in Green Bay, WI but it is fairly civilized, a person has to go further north like Crivitz, Pembine, etc…. Well, have fun for now! Rose S. P.S. I have heard of Google for Cash but I really wonder if a person can make good money having their own blog site and placing ads on it. Rose S.
We were near Rhinelander. Lotsa fun. Placing ads on your blog: Not a recipe for big money by any means.
Good point Perry. I get my best thoughts driving (nothing to do but think) and surfing.
Surfing rocks. Sitting out the back, feet in the water, cliffs behind you, waiting for the next wave. That’s when I really feel alive and connnected.
Life is good.
In other words, you need to make an effort to put yourself in a “unusual” situation/place to get your mind to open up. That’s pretty common. Talk to some programmers and ask them what it’s like to spend a whole afternoon trying to find a bug and going home late without having figured it out. Then the next day walking in, opening the code and within seconds seeing exactly where the problem is and have it resolved within minutes.
That happens also with people that aren’t able to concentrate on something that’s only in the mind.
Your brain needs to stop every now and then, and if possible, be bombarded with out of the usual information. That’s what breaks those blocks that have built up in your brain.
If you know what your brain does, you can become a lot more efficient. :) But don’t go attack understanding the brain from the psychological point of view. Learn what’s really happening with brain cells. Once you understand this, you can reduce learning time by 80% and apply the 80/20 rule on learning and creativity as well.
What a wonderful post and idea.!!!Thanks for sharing.
Perry – I spent 10 days on a lake in Wisconsin last summer too. First time since I was a kid. Birch trees and loons. Gotta love it. Coming from Asia, Wisconsin seems extremely exotic.
Ride a pontoon boat for me,
Lucas
YOGABODY
Perry-
I am concerned that you may not be taking precautions against your son getting bit by a tick. You are camping in a tick-endemic area & they are the size of a poppy seed… one gets in his hair and you’ll never see it, & he won’t feel the bite. He could get sick and your doctor is not likely to know what it is, leaving it untreated and going systemic. This happened to my daughter, and trust me, it’s a parent’s nightmare. Do tick checks– head to toe! Remove with tweezers, pulling straight up. Do not use matches, gasoline, etc. Makes them regurgitate into your bloodstream.
Bev
Thanks for the heads up, Bev-
Perry
The simple things in life are the best. Ride a bike – Walk the beach – Feel the Sun
Right On Perry
In Spark: The Revolutionary New Science of Exercise and the Brain, John Ratey points out that the only reason we have brains is so that we can move, and that if we don’t move, our brains can’t really operate properly. He points out that plants, which don’t move around, don’t have brains, while animals do. He actually gives an example of really small creature that swims around a bit until it finds a permanent spot to secure itself on the reef and, basically, turn into a plant. Once the animal has secured itself, it eats its brain.
Perry, I have to agree completely. If you never let yourself detach from your work, you’ll often miss crucial elements that need a different state of mind to realize.
For me, it’s actually getting some physical exercise (kung fu). It’s a great way to let off steam, pull yourself away from work, and in the process your subconscious cranks through a few things. I know I’ve come back from a good workout with a new idea that somehow popped itself into my mind before.
…Yeahhh Perry… love it.
I exercise regularly 5 days a week… and often even 6 times…and it is JUST then that I get my most inspired thoughts and Flashes of GREATNESS enters in to my mind.
I do need a gadget though where I can capture all these ideas and “Flash Thoughts” SWOOSHING by in a Nano Second or even LESS at times.
….come to think of it… I should bring bring my little digital recorder with me more often when I am out exercising.
Anyway… you are totally right… moving about and gettiing a FREE DOWNLOAD of Inspired Thoughts and ideas… is a common denominator for me most of the times ;-) and is highly recommended.
Alf
Mr. RipCard
http://www.RipCard.com
When I have to explain my need to constantly move the analogy of a shark often comes to mind, because sharks can’t float, if they stopped swimming they’d sink. The other day I read the article by John Medina where it was described very precisely in a few sentences:
“The brain appears to have been designed to solve problems related to surviving in an outdoor setting in unstable meteorological conditions. And to do that in near-constant motion. That’s what the brain’s good at. So if you wanted to design a work environment directly opposed to what the brain was naturally good at doing, you’d design something like an office.” http://bit.ly/16OtWd
I actually have a treadmill-desk on my wish list.
Great reminder of what is truly important and what really stimulates our creativity. Thank you.
My best ideas come when I’m running with headphones on. It’s like a flurry of adrenaline and creative thought. The downside is I can’t capture it with pen in the moment. :-)
Hey Perry,
Nice of you to bring this up. I played tennis some months ago, and now i am just saturated with work. I am working to automate all of this, but the thing I want to share is that since im not doing any exercises now, my best ideas come when i am taking a shower.
Now that you mention it, its because i do not have any other free time to really think about the strategic part of my business…why are we working so hard if at the end we dont have even have a hobby….
Thanks a lot for the post
Interesting – how a simple reminder like this can set things in motion. Going out for a walk now.
Enjoy!
Perry,
On occasions on Sunday mornings I would attend church services. And depending on the day I would go through the motions (to looking like I was actually paying attention). Sitting-up straight, bible open, etc.
Suddenly without warning I noticed my mind wandering. I would think about all sorts of problems and come-up with some clever off-the wall-solutions. (Great stuff in my humble opinion).
I felt like I was tuning-in to some deep channel in my brain. The frustrating thing was that I could not recreate this when I was sitting home alone.
Your running and biking story made me think about this and that maybe one’s mind has to be ‘busy’ doing something else (something repetitive, relatively monotonous, and even slightly boring) before the mind can drift into creative-problem-solving mode.
I don’t run and it has been a long time since I rode a bike however next time I am in church I am taking a pen and pad.
(P.S. It doesn’t always happen because sometimes I do pay attention in church :))
I walk my dogs several times every day. Dogs live simple lives…its such a big deal for them to “go for a walk”. ;) For me, its my time to think and contemplate or maybe to not think at all if my brain needs a break. Most importantly it breaks up my day and gets me out of my chair, away from computer and out of my office even if its just for a few minutes.
Perry I have to admit to being guilty of not regularly allowing the wind to blow thru my afro. However I have to admit that the Eureka moments in my business have come while I’ve been away from my PC. Like washing the dishes, shopping at ASDA (aka WalMart here in the UK), taking a bus ride etc. Thanks for sharing.
Perry,
I have heard great things about you…and to be honest I like what I have seen thus far.
I saw your name in the Formula 5 platform.
I am a slow learner so when I finish my course with Paul Lambert I will deep lot more into your site…many thanks and I like the story witn your son Kuyler…
Perry,
One of the most bizarre moments of my life was the day I sat in a 4-man intensive at your house.
First time we’d ever met face-to-face. Very cool.
The bizarre part happened after lunch. You stood up and said, “I’m taking a walk. Everyone is welcome.”
No one flinched. I’m thinking, “I paid a load of money to pick this guy’s brains for 2 days. If not one else is going to take him up on a stroll, I’ll gladly claim the 1-1 time.”
And I did.
Remember, we walked around that park, just north of your place there.
Well, in that 30 min of motion, you unlocked a number of great secrets for me. In fact, I believe it was mental preparation for the mind-blowing epiphany that I was to have about 2 hours later. I seriously don’t think my mind would have been as clear, with all pistons firing if I’d have just sat on the couch and let my lunch worm its way down into my intestines.
Since that day, I’ve gone on many many walks. I’ve discovered that mental lightning almost always strikes during, or just after, and invigorating walk, ride, trot or swim.
Via motion and genius!
— Joshua
I always find I get my best thinking done when my body is in some form of auto-pilot motion and engaged in an automatic task which just allows my mind to roam around and free-wheel.
Often it’s driving, sometimes walking, even doing the ironing!
I just kind of plant the idea to consider in my mind and let go, and then surprising things happen…
Thank you for the mini-course. And, I love your authentic messages.