The other weekend, I re-read Bertrand Russell’s The Conquest of Happiness. It’s all about happiness (no surprise), but in an aside, Russell explains how he solves difficult intellectual issues.
I think I’ve followed this strategy myself — not because I cleverly realized it was a good strategy, but because I was stumped, so put aside a question out of sheer desperation.
Here’s his method…
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i stumbled on this technique on my own. I had no idea it had been written about. I find when i do this it irritates many people around me. They want to see me “working” on a solution, decision, action, etc… all i have ever said is ,”I will pray on this and wait for an answer.” I do not actually do this in a religious way at all. i am just think about it with intensity then mentally set it aside in an imaginary shoe box. solutions inevitably follow sometimes quickly sometimes slowly but generally they are good because I did not force an answer or pressure myself.