What Happens When we Let it Simmer?

COOKING UP A CURRY…

It seems applicable to any creative endeavor, as to life in general, that a process sometimes just needs to run its course—a course we aren't meant to influence.

It's about giving something time to breathe without forcefully pushing it about, like refraining from constantly digging up seeds to see if they've grown yet.

Albert Einstein offered an encouraging insight: "It's not that I'm so smart, it's just that I stay with problems longer."

What if there’s more to staying with something than just sticking it out?

What if the patience of engagement can have a bigger impact on the outcome than forcefully going at something?

The process is comparable to cooking. Just as a chef allows ingredients to simmer, letting flavors meld and develop, we can allow our thoughts and experiences to "simmer" until they reach clarity.

Maybe there is a deeper power to "taking something with us" without insisting on an immediate resolve.

Maybe apparent external inactivity can be a crucial internal development of the creative process.

It's often during moments of seeming idleness that our subconscious mind continues to work, generating new ideas beyond our mental constructs. It’s what gives unexpected dots the breathing space to connect.

I'm assuming this is the reason many dishes taste better the second day, when the ingredients have had some time to simmer.

Just the other day, I got impatient cooking a curry and had it before it had really reached its full flavor. The ingredients were all there, but there was a disappointing blandness as the dish hadn't settled to its full potential.

Letting things simmer can be a sanity saving approach when we get that "last-minute panic mode" before a vacation, frantically trying to answer every email and solve every open point.

What if, instead of trying to pass a camel through the eye of a needle, we just let some of those issues simmer? It doesn't mean hoping someone else will fix it. It means trusting that leaving a "tab open" can create an unexpected flow for something that seems inherently stuck.

What is There to Gain?

By integrating simmering into our process, we're essentially giving space for fresh insights to materialize beyond our current mental concepts.

What if letting things simmer is akin to a more patient inquiry?

It's like exposing raw ideas and thoughts to the stream of ever-present creative intelligence and seeing what comes back. This is why a problem we leave "open" at the end of a day often doesn't appear as problematic the next morning. The inquiry is often more important than a single answer, especially since a solid answer rarely exists.

Letting things simmer is like inviting a natural process to engage.

This open-ended curiosity reminds me of how Jon Kabat-Zinn describes inquiry: “Inquiry is not so much thinking about answers... It really involves just listening to the thinking that your questioning evokes, as if you were sitting by the side of the stream of your own thoughts.”

Letting things simmer is largely about trusting a natural timing.

And while it can come with a sense of discomfort to let go of trying to push for an immediate solution, I'm increasingly observing how that unsettling patience pays off in unexpected ways.

It´s made me contemplate the popular saying: “seek and you will find.”

What if seeking doesn't mean actively searching, but rather creating the conditions for discoveries to surface?

What if our level of trust manifests the possibilities to materialize?

Can answers reveal themselves under less pressure?

In my experience, answers often show up when not directly aiming at them.

Sometimes, this requires herculean patience, especially with life's big questions. Yet, often when we release the pressure for things to go a certain way, it surprisingly takes us down a more aligned path.

It seems creativity can be shy, often materializing when we aren’t directly pushing for it. It's as if under constant bombardment and surveillance, it loses its grip.

The more we try to force a result, the less it often seems willing to move along.

It fascinates me how I often can't predict when there will be a sudden flow for something, as when writing a passage more effortlessly. And with the same lack of prediction, I can't force myself out of a creative block, no matter how hard I try.

The Zeigarnik effect, a psychological phenomenon, suggests that people remember uncompleted tasks better than completed ones. This effect supports the value of giving a process some space.

When we let an idea or project simmer, it remains active in our subconscious, allowing our minds to continue working on it even when we're not actively engaged.

The general concept of incubation in problem-solving is well-supported. Recent studies have shown that giving the mind a break, or a period of incubation, can significantly benefit creative problem-solving and lead to fresh insights, especially when we've been initially stuck on an incorrect solution.

Finding the Right Balance

Admittedly, while simmering can be beneficial, it's crucial to strike a balance. It's not useful to disturb a soufflé in the making by opening the oven too early, as it will collapse. But leaving the curry on the stove way past its full flavor will merely cook it inedible. The same way, overthinking or prolonged indecision can lead to missed opportunities or stagnation.

The key is to alternate between periods of active engagement and reflective simmering, knowing when to push forward and when to step back.

This process can lead to unexpected breakthroughs and more refined solutions.

Simmering is about consciously leaving things aside at times, trusting that they will resurface when ready. It reliably works when working out a text, drafting a presentation, or even giving an argument some time to "simmer off" the heat.

Have you ever noticed how a perfume often changes considerably on your skin once it has had time to simmer? Or how a difficult conversation with someone can become much clearer at a later stage, once the initial heat has passed?

And how often do we look back on life and a seeming random coincidence turns out to be something that had been simmering in the shadows to connect with forceful power when all elements were ready?

I've encountered this many times like when having a hunch when visiting a place I didn't even consider as a more permanent home, only to find myself living there later on.

In essence, we're all in an ongoing simmering process, constantly transforming and evolving as we navigate life's journey.

Take a moment to simmer on these:

• Can you recall a time when letting a problem simmer led to a breakthrough you couldn't have forced?

• How might you create space in your daily life to allow for this kind of creative patience?

• What activities help you enter a state of productive incubation (like going for a walk, cooking, or reading)?

• How could the concept of "simmering" apply to your personal growth and self-discovery?