Get rich, the new age way

"It's not about how rich you want to be, it's about how you want to be rich." That's the catchphrase and premise of a new book which explores the philosophical side of wealth. AMANDA MORRALL talks to author Mike "Hutch" Hutcheson.

A new way of thinking - rooted in Eastern wisdom - has infiltrated the business bookshelf recently.

It represents a shift from the traditional focus on money-making strategies and get-rich schemes to a more holistic examination of our reasons for pursuing wealth for wealth's sake.

Relax and Grow Rich, one of the latest titles in this genre challenges the reader to question his or her path in life and suggests a profound inquiry will yield rewards higher in value than simple monetary gain.

From that perspective, it is a "self-help" although co-author Mike "Hutch" Hutcheson is loath to describe it as such.

Hutcheson (a former advertising executive whose CV includes Colenso, KHM and Saatchi and Saatchi), says the content is just as relevant, if not more, to businesses and corporates trying to push the bottomline.

A fair amount of Relax and Grow Rich is focused on the subject of creativity and how best to exercise it.

Boardroom barracudas may not like to hear what he has to say.

Hutcheson claims that the best thoughts and ideas are not borne of pressure-cooker brainstorming sessions on whiteboards but rather private moments of calm and tranquility, usually outside the office.

Creative genius conceived in the shower, on the golf course or standing on one's head in yoga class is not the kind of work ethic employers typically like to encourage - at least by those who pay their employees to be sitting at their desk 9am to 5pm. But according to proponents of this new age "flow thinking" paradigm, individuals and business who open their minds and operations to it could end up all the richer for it.

The rationale is that individuals engaged in activities of a relaxing, low-key nature, are more likely to come up with creative ideas, innovations and solutions that could prove profitable.

"I've never seen a good idea come out of a corporate planning process," insists Hutcheson, whose co- partnered project was fittingly conceived over a cup of coffee.

Hutcheson is adamant there is no mystery about why creativity and innovation is best spawned outside the confines of an uptight office environment. It all has to do with brain chemistry, he maintains.

"Most good ideas happen in the shower and there's a good reason why. All that warm water against the back of your head produces serotonin which helps you relax and create space for good ideas. It has nothing to do with so-called 'secrets' or anything, it's just common physiological reasons."

Brain waves form the heart of it, he elaborates. In everyday mode, with the mind constantly processing messages, images and information, the brain produces high frequency beta waves. Typically, they pulsate at 13-plus cycles per second. In the alpha state, waves typically move at a rate of 13-8 cycles per second, theta waves, 4-8, and delta 0-4.

Plotted on a graph, beta waves appear like waves on an ideal surfing day whereas "alpha or theta" waves more closely resemble a calm low- tide. Highly practiced yogis and meditators have scientifically demonstrated a conscious ability to achieve theta and delta states of mind.

Noted chemist Dmitri Medeleev is said to have experienced the Eureka moment that gave rise to the Periodic Table in a reverie induced by a nap while playing a game of Solitaire.

The resulting table, structured like a deck of cards in Solitaire, "not only placed the elements in relevant positions but also correctly predicted the locations of elements yet undiscovered", marvels Hutcheson.

A dozy brain may seem at odds with creative insights but the brain in its more relaxed state, is more receptive to the cross-migration of messages from right and left hemispheres.

Hutcheson insists the science is good reason to take what some might construe as new-age bunk seriously. After all, an uninspired office environment could prove the death of creativity.

Hutcheson makes reference to an advertising friend who once pin- pointed on a map the birthing locations of the best ideas in business.

"Almost none happened in the office, less than 10 per cent."

So does the science of relaxation and creativity, preclude any good thinking on the job? Not necessarily. Hutcheson believes those employers who foster creative work environments and encourage activities that promote relaxation (such as Google) could be rewarded.

"The quality of our creative output is directly proportional to the positivity of the atmosphere in which we work and learn," he speculates in the book. So where does work fit in among a playroom of corporate positivity?

Hutcheson calls it the "paradox of relaxation".

"The paradox of relaxation is, you have to be very relaxed to come up with a good idea but then to do something that comes out of relaxation, it requires lots and lots of practice." In other words: work.

In Outliers: A The Story of Success, author Malcolm Gladwell postulated that to excel at any particular task or job, it required 10,000 hours of effort. How do you reconcile relaxation with work? Hutcheson admits it can be a tricky balance promoting creativity in the workforce but also keeping employees on task. He suggests creative structuring of one's business could be key.

"It's called risk planning. You have your mavericks on call and you have pragmatic expertise on staff to make things happen . You have to refresh your ideas and processes regularly and keep that up to date."

And individuals who want to access their creative best? Based on his own experience and years spent coaching businesses, Hutcheson says no amount of self-help talk or leadership coaching will impact unless an individual has found their path.

"Unless you know yourself, you don't know what you should be doing, or where you should be going. A lot of us just end up being hostage to our mortgages or working at a dead end job and we're not happy."

This Chicken-Soup-For-The-Soul type of advice might seem misplaced in a book whose core focus is creativity but Hutcheson insists there is a tie-in.

It may branch off in unexpected directions but the book, he says, "really just connects the dots for people".

Correction

In last week's Financial Agony Aunt column we inadvertently deleted a per annum, thus halving AMP's rate. The AMP default fund is actually up 3.94 per cent per annum over two years.

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