In modern Western society the assumption that we can tackle everything with our hard-wired brain by conscious thought is widely spread. Whenever we encounter a problem we ponder our heads over it, cut it into bits and pieces we can handle and try to tie the ends together with a solution. Whenever we want to learn something new we think that knowledge (e.g. by reading a book) immediately will transfer into know-how. We have ended up to believe that with conscious thought we can manage – well – everything.
There is, however, another great force in play that we forget to give recognition: the unconscious mind. A way of thinking that does not lead us to straightforward solutions and does not tie every open end immediately. With our mind we learn just by doing and going along. Afterwards it is difficult to describe how we even learned to do it. In that way it is completely non-descriptive.
What I am talking about is the muse artists talk about when they describe their artistic process. What I am talking about is the giant leaps brilliant scientist are able to take in during their research. When asked about any analytics behind those discoveries they reveal that they cannot grasp how they came up with it.
Bottom line: Give way to the slower tortoise mind instead of the fast but superficial hare brain.
