The Incubation Period

The term “incubation” comes from many different fields of study. In medicine, it is the period which a virus infects an organism and the time symptoms start occurring. Ouch. Sounds like an episode of Aliens. In psychology, incubation refers to the mind working its unconscious side to a problem when the conscious side is stumped or out of ideas. This is the phenomenon that is experienced when you’re working on something during the day, and run into a complex problem you cannot solve. Taking a break and then returning to the problem, you find new, interesting ways to solve it.

Our unconscious mind is a very powerful force. It influences our behavior, and its reaches are infinite. Our conscious mind is limited, but directs our free will, and power to control our desires. A great study on the unconscious mind and its influence over our business and entrepreneurial success is detailed in The Answer by John Assaraf. This is another topic for another day. Read more