Famously (and that means it probably didn't happen at all) Archimedes shouted 'Eureka!' and jumped out of the bath when he realised that the displacement of the water was related to the volume of him, sitting in it. In that little outburst of a single Greek word (as apocryphal as it may be) we catch a glimpse of sudden, unexpected genius striking someone like lightning in the bathtub.
Unexpected wunderblitz or carefully and scientifically-tested principle, it still led to the idea of buoyancy and ship-building (though in all honesty, it probably didn't did it?) and the idea must have started somewhere - even if it wasn't actually an old philosopher leaping out of an overflowing bathtub.
But where? And how do good ideas form? Are there things we can do to create the right environment for good ideas to click together in our minds?
I've got no real idea why I'm thinking about this now. It's gone midnight and I should be asleep, dreaming of playing the piano for the Queen or something. I'm entirely aware that these conditions create the potential for questionable ideas rather than notably good ones.
To get struck by lightning you have to be at the right place at the right time. The storm must be overhead and you must be in the open. Similarly with inspiration, you have to cultivate being in the mood to wonder, to think, to dream, pray, write or listen. Then maybe the heavens will open for your Eureka moment.
I think too, you have to be prepared to do what comes next - the hard graft of working it out, thinking it through, developing and shaping the idea. Good ideas can ping into your head but it's useless unless you know how to wire up the lightbulb. Even Archimedes ran a few more baths before he could really shout 'I've got it!' (I imagine)
It's properly late. I ought to try creating the right conditions for recharging the old thinking engine, and drop off to sleep. Plus that Steinway won't play itself will it? No Ma'am...
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