How Walking and Nature Boost Creativity, Focus, and Leadership

Making Space to Think: What Thoreau and modern research teach us about movement, self-cultivation, learning, and professional growth.

Have you ever struggled with a problem at your desk, only to have a promising idea emerge while walking, cycling, or enjoying time outdoors?

There's a reason this happens. Research suggests that movement and time in nature can support creative thinking, attention, and cognitive well-being, all of which matter for learning, problem-solving, and leadership.

More than 160 years ago, Henry David Thoreau explored the connection between nature, movement, and intentional living. In his essay Walking, he wrote:

"In Wildness is the preservation of the World."

For Thoreau, time outdoors was about more than exercise. It was an opportunity for reflection, discovery, and self-cultivation.

Today, science offers additional insights into why these experiences can be valuable for our personal and professional development.

How Movement Supports Creativity and Problem-Solving

In The Extended Mind, Annie Murphy Paul explores how our bodies, environments, and relationships contribute to thinking, learning, and problem-solving.

Her work challenges the assumption that thinking happens exclusively inside our heads. Our physical experiences and surroundings can influence how we process information and develop ideas.

A Stanford University study found that walking increased creative idea generation compared with sitting, whether participants walked indoors or outdoors.

The researchers found particular benefits for divergent thinking, which involves generating multiple ideas and possibilities.

Consider how often this matters in professional life.

Whether you're developing a new initiative, preparing for a challenging conversation, exploring a career transition, or considering a leadership decision, the ability to generate different possibilities can be valuable.

Sometimes the most useful thing we can do isn't concentrate harder. It's change our environment, move our bodies, or give ourselves room to reflect.

How Time in Nature Can Improve Focus and Attention

Many professionals navigate days filled with meetings, messages, decisions, and competing priorities.

Even meaningful work can be mentally demanding.

Research published in Psychological Science found that interacting with natural environments improved performance on certain attention and working-memory tasks.

These findings support attention restoration theory, which proposes that natural environments can help replenish the mental resources we use for sustained concentration.

And connecting with nature doesn't require traveling to a remote wilderness.

A neighborhood park, community garden, tree-lined path, or nearby green space can offer opportunities to enjoy the natural world.

For professionals whose work involves creativity, learning, decision-making, and leadership, making time for these experiences may be especially worthwhile.

Self-Cultivation: More Than Productivity

I think of self-cultivation as intentionally nurturing the physical, intellectual, emotional, and creative capacities that help us grow and thrive.

Movement and time in nature can be part of that practice.

As an executive coach, I often conduct coaching and strategy sessions while walking, either by phone or in person. These conversations offer opportunities to explore ideas and reflect outside traditional meeting environments.

But we don't need to justify every walk, bike ride, or afternoon outdoors by what it helps us accomplish.

These experiences have value in their own right.

Recognizing their potential benefits for creativity, learning, and well-being can help us prioritize them, especially when our schedules are full.

For purpose-driven professionals, sustainable growth isn't simply about doing more. It's also about cultivating the conditions that help us think, learn, create, and live well.

Three Ways to Make Movement and Nature Part of Your Workday

You don't need to dramatically change your schedule to experiment with these ideas.

1. Move when you're feeling stuck. Try walking or another enjoyable form of movement when brainstorming, exploring possibilities, or working through a challenge.

2. Make space for nature. Take an outdoor break, visit a park, or enjoy a nearby green space between demanding activities.

3. Allow time for reflection. After a meaningful conversation, workshop, or challenging experience, resist the urge to immediately move on to the next task. Give yourself time to process what you've learned.

Small changes in how we structure our days can create more opportunities for reflection, creativity, and renewal.

Making Space for What Matters

Thoreau challenged people to consider how they were living, not simply what they were accomplishing.

That invitation remains relevant today.

Sometimes making space for what matters begins by getting outside.

Where do your best ideas tend to emerge? And how might you create more opportunities for those experiences?

About the Author

Erica Mattison is an executive coach, career strategist, facilitator, and author of Clarifying What Matters. A former environmental protection lobbyist in Massachusetts, she brings a longstanding commitment to sustainability and well-being to her work.

She partners with purpose-driven professionals and organizations to cultivate effective leadership, navigate transitions, and create more intentional, sustainable ways of working. A nature lover, Erica often conducts coaching and strategy sessions while walking, either by phone or in person.

Interested in making more space for what matters in your work and life?

Explore coaching and book a consultation with Erica Mattison.