Do you have time to think?

I don’t know if you have come across Richard Feynman – the chances are if you have you will be a fan. He’s credited as one of the 20^th century’s most brilliant physicist and original thinkers winning the Nobel Prize for all but rebuilding the theory of quantum electrodynamics .... we are not talking an intellectual slouch here! Most people first learned of him when he proved – live on TV- how the space shuttle Challenger met its untimely end, but you might not know he also studied Maya hieroglyphs, was a prankster, juggler, safecracker, bongo player, and a proud amateur painter. The Guardian simply described him as ‘probably the coolest scientist who ever lived’.

When asked for advice from his students he would always reply “Don’t you have  time to think?” and encourage them to carve out some time for themselves. Still a great question for leaders trapped in the constant busy-ness of the day to day.

So ... have you got enough time to think? What is stopping you putting more time aside for some quality thinking time?