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Too Fast to Think: How to Reclaim Your Creativity in a Hyper-connected Work Culture
Our lives are getting faster and faster. We are engulfed in constant distraction from email, social media and our 'always on' work culture. We are too busy, too overloaded with information and too focused on analytical left-brain thinking processes to be creative. Too Fast to Think exposes how our current work practices, media culture and education systems are detrimental to innovation. The speed and noise of modern life is undermining the clarity and quiet that is essential to power individual thought. Our best ideas are often generated when we are free to think diffusely, in an uninterrupted environment, which is why moments of inspiration so often occur in places completely separate to our offices.
To reclaim creativity, Too Fast to Think teaches you how to retrain your brain into allowing creative ideas to emerge, before they are shut down by interruption, distraction or the self-doubt of your over-rational brain. This is essential reading for anyone who wants to maximize their creative potential, as well as that of their team. Supported by cutting-edge research from the University of the Arts London and insightful interviews with business leaders, academics, artists, politicians and psychologists, Chris Lewis takes a holistic approach to explain the 8 crucial traits that are inherently linked to creation and innovation.
To reclaim creativity, Too Fast to Think teaches you how to retrain your brain into allowing creative ideas to emerge, before they are shut down by interruption, distraction or the self-doubt of your over-rational brain. This is essential reading for anyone who wants to maximize their creative potential, as well as that of their team. Supported by cutting-edge research from the University of the Arts London and insightful interviews with business leaders, academics, artists, politicians and psychologists, Chris Lewis takes a holistic approach to explain the 8 crucial traits that are inherently linked to creation and innovation.
232 pages, Paperback
Published October 25, 2016
25 people are currently reading
301 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
August 3, 2016
*I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.*
Firstly, I admit to not having finished this book. I just couldn't do it. The structure was too annoying. I wanted to be engaged - some of the ideas were intriguing - but after close reading of three of the chapters, I gave up and rapidly skimmed the rest.
In "Too Fast to Think," Chris Lewis (attempts to) argue that over-stimulation is crushing our creativity. His supporting evidence, however, is scattered and fragmented. His writing uses two styles of rhetoric: unsupported claims ("millennials lack creativity," "the world is falling apart because people don't read enough books") or parroting experts. The result is a mishmash of business and psychology that lacks any convincing narrative or rhetoric leaves me, as the reader, wondering what the hell he's talking about or where he's taking me.
Lewis often gets off topic. He spends as much time talking about how people should be arranged in a meeting and how to run a workplace as he does about creativity. If this somehow relate to his main theme, he fails to demonstrate how.
This lack of synthesis and analysis resonates throughout the book. Lewis quotes more studies than I've read in almost any other business/pop psychology book; each chapter has multiple case studies. Yet the information isn't drawn into a narrative. There's a saying in journalism - "Don't dump your notebook into your story" - that is, don't just take every quote you've been given and slap them onto a page as your article. That's what this book is: a spewing of every single fact Lewis has discovered, in the hope that some of those will stick to the reader.
The case studies included in each chapter were particularly confusing. Lewis often fails to complete an idea or give enough background information on what a person is doing, where they come from, and why I should care about their experiences. They're written in a question/answer kind of way - Lewis asks a question ("How do you stay creative?") and then puts a direct quote from that person, answering his question. That's not an engaging way to write a book.
There's also a heavy reliance on the reader already having knowledge of things Lewis talks about. Some of this is merely cultural - he's based in the U.K., and as an American, I was confused about some of the people and businesses he was talking about. Some of this, however, went beyond this to psychological ideas - the concept of "flow" was initially introduced in a way that wouldn't have made sense if I hadn't already read the work of Csikszentmihalyi.
Maybe this is because I have an early copy, but the fact-checking here could also use some work. Lewis refers to graphs and data as evidence, when the data clearly hasn't been shown as statistically significant; some of his facts clearly haven't been checked (such as claiming headlines from February 2016 are actually headlines from February 2015).
Lewis has also managed to partake in cleverly-disguised millennial bashing. In the first few chapters alone, there are several snide comments about millennials, with no other support for them than anecdotal quotes from 'experts.' Do we really have to go down the road of "back in MY day" yet again? It's getting old.
In some ways I feel odd giving this book only 2 stars. After all, I found myself copying down large passages for future reference, and it sparked several conversations with peers over the next few days. I do give Lewis credit for presenting some overall ideas that are thoroughly worth thinking about. For example, he repeatedly points out that, for creativity to blossom and new ideas to develop, we need to give our minds space to explore and think - if every minute of the day is crammed with answering e-mails, that isn't going to happen. He notes that "busyness" is often falsely correlated with productivity or new ideas, and that technology such as e-mail and IM, while wondrously helpful, can also be damaging if not used properly. Essentially, it seemed he was trying to argue that we as a society haven't yet figured out how to use these tools appropriately - how to live in our modern world while still training students and workers to think outside of the box, to have time to ferment new ideas. That's an incredibly valuable conversation to have as a society, and I'm glad I read this book so that I could start pondering those questions. However, the method Lewis used to present those arguments was quiet poor.
The content in this book was worth a conversation. There were just too many erroneous facts and poorly supported claims to make it a good read.
Firstly, I admit to not having finished this book. I just couldn't do it. The structure was too annoying. I wanted to be engaged - some of the ideas were intriguing - but after close reading of three of the chapters, I gave up and rapidly skimmed the rest.
In "Too Fast to Think," Chris Lewis (attempts to) argue that over-stimulation is crushing our creativity. His supporting evidence, however, is scattered and fragmented. His writing uses two styles of rhetoric: unsupported claims ("millennials lack creativity," "the world is falling apart because people don't read enough books") or parroting experts. The result is a mishmash of business and psychology that lacks any convincing narrative or rhetoric leaves me, as the reader, wondering what the hell he's talking about or where he's taking me.
Lewis often gets off topic. He spends as much time talking about how people should be arranged in a meeting and how to run a workplace as he does about creativity. If this somehow relate to his main theme, he fails to demonstrate how.
This lack of synthesis and analysis resonates throughout the book. Lewis quotes more studies than I've read in almost any other business/pop psychology book; each chapter has multiple case studies. Yet the information isn't drawn into a narrative. There's a saying in journalism - "Don't dump your notebook into your story" - that is, don't just take every quote you've been given and slap them onto a page as your article. That's what this book is: a spewing of every single fact Lewis has discovered, in the hope that some of those will stick to the reader.
The case studies included in each chapter were particularly confusing. Lewis often fails to complete an idea or give enough background information on what a person is doing, where they come from, and why I should care about their experiences. They're written in a question/answer kind of way - Lewis asks a question ("How do you stay creative?") and then puts a direct quote from that person, answering his question. That's not an engaging way to write a book.
There's also a heavy reliance on the reader already having knowledge of things Lewis talks about. Some of this is merely cultural - he's based in the U.K., and as an American, I was confused about some of the people and businesses he was talking about. Some of this, however, went beyond this to psychological ideas - the concept of "flow" was initially introduced in a way that wouldn't have made sense if I hadn't already read the work of Csikszentmihalyi.
Maybe this is because I have an early copy, but the fact-checking here could also use some work. Lewis refers to graphs and data as evidence, when the data clearly hasn't been shown as statistically significant; some of his facts clearly haven't been checked (such as claiming headlines from February 2016 are actually headlines from February 2015).
Lewis has also managed to partake in cleverly-disguised millennial bashing. In the first few chapters alone, there are several snide comments about millennials, with no other support for them than anecdotal quotes from 'experts.' Do we really have to go down the road of "back in MY day" yet again? It's getting old.
In some ways I feel odd giving this book only 2 stars. After all, I found myself copying down large passages for future reference, and it sparked several conversations with peers over the next few days. I do give Lewis credit for presenting some overall ideas that are thoroughly worth thinking about. For example, he repeatedly points out that, for creativity to blossom and new ideas to develop, we need to give our minds space to explore and think - if every minute of the day is crammed with answering e-mails, that isn't going to happen. He notes that "busyness" is often falsely correlated with productivity or new ideas, and that technology such as e-mail and IM, while wondrously helpful, can also be damaging if not used properly. Essentially, it seemed he was trying to argue that we as a society haven't yet figured out how to use these tools appropriately - how to live in our modern world while still training students and workers to think outside of the box, to have time to ferment new ideas. That's an incredibly valuable conversation to have as a society, and I'm glad I read this book so that I could start pondering those questions. However, the method Lewis used to present those arguments was quiet poor.
The content in this book was worth a conversation. There were just too many erroneous facts and poorly supported claims to make it a good read.
September 6, 2016
We are being sapped of our energy, our creativity and maybe even our lives “thanks” to the 24/7 hyper-connected world and ever-increasingly our work is contributing to this pressure. The author of this book believes that we may need to hit the brakes of this runaway machine, possibly before it is too late.
At work the typical worker is overloaded with information and sensory inputs, often fighting to deal with things at the cost that any creativity and new thinking is impeded. Help is at hand, believes the author, and eight traits allegedly can help our creativity and innovation, whilst cutting down the pressure. It sounds too good to be true! All we need to do is retrain our brains and here the author says that science and the latest research can be on our side.
Intertwined within the book is a certain type of humour, a self-critique and openness. This helped make the book less of a dry, theoretical read. Instead it was quite accessible and engaging, despite it feeling quite technical or involved at times. However, this is more than just a self-help book and the astute reader may be able to get rather a lot out of it that can help them in their business and private activities. It can also have you looking at how you communicate and interact with others and maybe by modifying your own behaviour, as a recipient of information, you will be changing how you communicating with others and that will benefit them too.
It was hardly an onerous read yet it felt as it was leaving its mark on the reader, irrespective of whether you felt you had a problem that needed addressing or not. A book worthy of closer consideration and for those who are feeling the pressure, it might be a great bit of preventative medicine.
Autamme.com
At work the typical worker is overloaded with information and sensory inputs, often fighting to deal with things at the cost that any creativity and new thinking is impeded. Help is at hand, believes the author, and eight traits allegedly can help our creativity and innovation, whilst cutting down the pressure. It sounds too good to be true! All we need to do is retrain our brains and here the author says that science and the latest research can be on our side.
Intertwined within the book is a certain type of humour, a self-critique and openness. This helped make the book less of a dry, theoretical read. Instead it was quite accessible and engaging, despite it feeling quite technical or involved at times. However, this is more than just a self-help book and the astute reader may be able to get rather a lot out of it that can help them in their business and private activities. It can also have you looking at how you communicate and interact with others and maybe by modifying your own behaviour, as a recipient of information, you will be changing how you communicating with others and that will benefit them too.
It was hardly an onerous read yet it felt as it was leaving its mark on the reader, irrespective of whether you felt you had a problem that needed addressing or not. A book worthy of closer consideration and for those who are feeling the pressure, it might be a great bit of preventative medicine.
Autamme.com
September 23, 2025
พุ่งเป้าไปที่ความคิดสร้างสรรค์ของมนุษยชาติที่ขาดหายไปจากการรบกวนของชีวิตในแบบปัจจุบัน
September 9, 2016
Too Fast to Think by Chris Lewis
I strongly recommend this book to leaders, managers and educators. This is an interesting and well written book. There are a few places where the author gets a bit bogged down but they are few. Chris Lewis looks at how our present fast paced lifestyle and culture is affecting people’s creativity. Lewis looks into the reasons this is happening as well as potential future results if the trend continues. His section on education is excellent. His quote of Sir Ken Robinson “…education systems were created in the image of the enlightenment and of industrialization.” Is spot on target. Unfortunately, the world has moved on but, for the most part, the educational system has not. As a V.P. of Quality Assurance I had to remind the people reporting through me that I wanted them to sit back, put their feet up and just THINK. Many younger people found this difficult to do. Lewis provides many reasons this type of thing is happening. I received a free copy of Too Fast to Think by Chris Lewis from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. Many thanks to NetGalley.
I strongly recommend this book to leaders, managers and educators. This is an interesting and well written book. There are a few places where the author gets a bit bogged down but they are few. Chris Lewis looks at how our present fast paced lifestyle and culture is affecting people’s creativity. Lewis looks into the reasons this is happening as well as potential future results if the trend continues. His section on education is excellent. His quote of Sir Ken Robinson “…education systems were created in the image of the enlightenment and of industrialization.” Is spot on target. Unfortunately, the world has moved on but, for the most part, the educational system has not. As a V.P. of Quality Assurance I had to remind the people reporting through me that I wanted them to sit back, put their feet up and just THINK. Many younger people found this difficult to do. Lewis provides many reasons this type of thing is happening. I received a free copy of Too Fast to Think by Chris Lewis from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. Many thanks to NetGalley.
December 23, 2016
While there have been a number of books written on creativity, Lewis takes a unique position around why our creativity has been threatened by modern technology and the speed at which we expect to react and interact socially.
This maybe self-evident to many creators, but I think there still remains a large group of leaders and type A folks who could benefit from reading his book to understand:
- The role of the left and right brain, and how the dichotomy is not as distinct as one would think
- The importance of rest and sleep
- The creative cycle and how to better harness it
- The importance of carving out time to do deep work and master skills
Finally, for those who feel like they aren't creative, it's worth reading to understand how they have crippled their own creativity, and how to rekindle it.
This maybe self-evident to many creators, but I think there still remains a large group of leaders and type A folks who could benefit from reading his book to understand:
- The role of the left and right brain, and how the dichotomy is not as distinct as one would think
- The importance of rest and sleep
- The creative cycle and how to better harness it
- The importance of carving out time to do deep work and master skills
Finally, for those who feel like they aren't creative, it's worth reading to understand how they have crippled their own creativity, and how to rekindle it.
July 16, 2018
Sometimes we should relax our brains instead of forcing ourselves to do more. Sleeping is not a wast of time and it's useful for fostering our creativity. We have to reconsider our basic ideas, like higher education can lead to more creativity, or working always too hard not smart is useless and even harmful.
It requires intelligence and long-term persistence instead of just throwing ourselves into the mud and get ourselves hurt.
It requires intelligence and long-term persistence instead of just throwing ourselves into the mud and get ourselves hurt.
October 21, 2017
I read this book thanks to Blinkist:
The key message in this book:
From the way we talk and walk to how we resolve conflicts and view the world, our cultural backgrounds determine how we behave. By interacting with people from different cultures, we’re better able to recognize and understand contrasting behaviors and communicate with individuals of all backgrounds.
Actionable advice:
Ask questions first before you judge someone’s behavior.
The next time you’re working or socializing with someone from a different cultural background and are confused by something the person did, resist the temptation to judge the behavior by your own cultural yardstick. Instead, consider how this behavior might make sense within the context of the person’s culture. Better yet, ask the person why he did what he did! This will help you handle such a situation more sensitively in the future, and you might even learn something new.
Suggested further reading:
The Culture Map by Erin Meyer
The Culture Map provides a framework for handling intercultural differences in business and illustrates how different cultures perceive the world. It helps us understand these differences, and in doing so improves our ability to react to certain behaviors that might have once seemed strange. With this knowledge, we can avoid misunderstandings and maintain conflict-free communication, regardless of where we are in the world.
The key message in this book:
From the way we talk and walk to how we resolve conflicts and view the world, our cultural backgrounds determine how we behave. By interacting with people from different cultures, we’re better able to recognize and understand contrasting behaviors and communicate with individuals of all backgrounds.
Actionable advice:
Ask questions first before you judge someone’s behavior.
The next time you’re working or socializing with someone from a different cultural background and are confused by something the person did, resist the temptation to judge the behavior by your own cultural yardstick. Instead, consider how this behavior might make sense within the context of the person’s culture. Better yet, ask the person why he did what he did! This will help you handle such a situation more sensitively in the future, and you might even learn something new.
Suggested further reading:
The Culture Map by Erin Meyer
The Culture Map provides a framework for handling intercultural differences in business and illustrates how different cultures perceive the world. It helps us understand these differences, and in doing so improves our ability to react to certain behaviors that might have once seemed strange. With this knowledge, we can avoid misunderstandings and maintain conflict-free communication, regardless of where we are in the world.
January 10, 2018
I received this book at an Institute of Directors event in London over a year ago. I promptly forgot about it amongst all my other reading aspirations but I'm kicking myself now for taking so long to get to it. I loved Lewis' exploration of ideas, the examples and interviewees he uses and the fact that this book covers a 'broad church' in just eight chapters. The writing style is not typical of a business book - I found it accessible and more conversational, a bit like having a series of fascinating discussions with a whole range of people. I particularly liked the section on Education in chapter 2 (I'm a school governor) and the chapter (5) dedicated to Sleep (of which I'm a great advocate).
In the closing pages, Lewis confesses that this was something he felt he had to do and writes "Because creativity speaks with such a quiet voice, we don't always hear it". Too Fast to Think goes beyond the 'work culture' limit of its sub-title - perhaps we should consider it a way of turning up the volume.
In the closing pages, Lewis confesses that this was something he felt he had to do and writes "Because creativity speaks with such a quiet voice, we don't always hear it". Too Fast to Think goes beyond the 'work culture' limit of its sub-title - perhaps we should consider it a way of turning up the volume.
October 20, 2017
كتاب مهم جدا لمن يقضون الوقت على وسائل الاتصال الاجتماعي التي تعمل إجهاد وتقتل المخيلة التي تعمل على الإبداع
علينا ان نعطي العقل الراحة ليبدع من جديد باستخدام الشقي الأيمن المسؤول على الألوان وقراءة مشاعر الآخرين ،والأيسر
المسؤول عن اللغة والتحليل والمنطق
الجامعات لا تعلم التواصل والإبداع علينا تغيير أساليب التدريس ليبدع الطلاب في المجتمع
ل
هذه العبارة من الكتاب
إن وسائل الإعلام الاجتماعية تتصدر مستويات الإجهاد، والتعليم" العالي ليس دائما الجواب عندما يتعلق الأمر بتعزيز الإبداع. العالم الذي نعيش فيه يعمل بمعدل سريع للغاية، لذلك تعطي عقلك الراحة "التي يحتاجها لإعادة الاتصال مع الجانب الإبداعي الخاص بك.
علينا ان نعطي العقل الراحة ليبدع من جديد باستخدام الشقي الأيمن المسؤول على الألوان وقراءة مشاعر الآخرين ،والأيسر
المسؤول عن اللغة والتحليل والمنطق
الجامعات لا تعلم التواصل والإبداع علينا تغيير أساليب التدريس ليبدع الطلاب في المجتمع
ل
هذه العبارة من الكتاب
إن وسائل الإعلام الاجتماعية تتصدر مستويات الإجهاد، والتعليم" العالي ليس دائما الجواب عندما يتعلق الأمر بتعزيز الإبداع. العالم الذي نعيش فيه يعمل بمعدل سريع للغاية، لذلك تعطي عقلك الراحة "التي يحتاجها لإعادة الاتصال مع الجانب الإبداعي الخاص بك.
June 4, 2018
The book has a strong premise, but the idea does not get developed very deeply or evenly. I didn't get many new ideas out of the book, but where I did, they came in such a hurry that I was left a bit sceptical. The author also wove through a few comments about millennials, but this seemed like pop commentary more than insight.
The book might have worked better as an anthology of interviews.
The book might have worked better as an anthology of interviews.
January 29, 2019
La educación superior se centra en la teoría más que en la enseñanza de la comunicación y la creatividad.
Es importante usar estos ocho rasgos creativos: callar, participar, soñar, relajarse, liberar, repetir, jugar y enseñar.
Es importante usar estos ocho rasgos creativos: callar, participar, soñar, relajarse, liberar, repetir, jugar y enseñar.
August 7, 2020
It may not be original or very insightful, but this book was standard good advice for reducing burnout and the stress of digital distraction to tap into one’s natural creativity and better problem-solving faculties.
March 7, 2022
The biggest takeaway from this book was this: "If we want to be more creative, we have to be careful how much noise we allow in our lives and how we allow ourselves to use or be used for engagement purposes."
October 9, 2017
Some good reminders on how to avoid distractions and getting re-connected with ones creative self.
October 20, 2017
It is somehow a sum of pretty good ideas on how to “help” our creativity in a world full of tech temptations.
The structure disappoints a bit.
And not enough new ideas.
The structure disappoints a bit.
And not enough new ideas.
August 7, 2018
Book about giving rest to your mind to become successful and creative in field.
December 18, 2024
เนื่อหาออกทางกว้างมากกว่าลึก จับโน้นโยงนี้ เล่าไปเรื่อยๆ
เหมาะกับอ่านเอาเพลิน มากกว่าอ่านเพื่อเปลี่ยน
เหมาะกับอ่านเอาเพลิน มากกว่าอ่านเพื่อเปลี่ยน
August 4, 2021
แม้ประเด็นจะดี แต่มันครอบจักรวาลเกิ้น
ประมาณไหน
ผู้เขียนเล่น โยง โลกาภิวัฒน์ ไปประสาทวิทยา ไปจนถึงเรื่องการนอนเลยครับ
อารมเหมือนเขียนคอลัมมาเยอะๆแล้วมารวมแหะ
ประมาณไหน
ผู้เขียนเล่น โยง โลกาภิวัฒน์ ไปประสาทวิทยา ไปจนถึงเรื่องการนอนเลยครับ
อารมเหมือนเขียนคอลัมมาเยอะๆแล้วมารวมแหะ
September 2, 2016
The premise and title of the book didn't quite connect to all the material within. I was expecting something similar to The Shallows about how to deal with the changing world of work. There was some of that but the book was more a mediation on the ways that creativity is valuable in the work place. I found a lot of great quotes in this book and agreed very strongly with the overall premise. It did feel like the author was drawing primarily on his own experience as the solution rather than as one of the possible ways to solve the problem. I didn't learn anything revolutionary in the book but it was enjoyable and a good reminder that even in the corporate environment we have to leave room for the human factor.
October 29, 2019
70% = 4 Stars
It was pretty good and made good suggestions and arguments. I didn't enjoy reading it as much as I thought I would however.
It was pretty good and made good suggestions and arguments. I didn't enjoy reading it as much as I thought I would however.
May 3, 2017
This book had me curious because the topic at hand, how does our world of constant distractions from e-mail, media, and social media impact our ability to be creative and think. I know what impact it has on me, and how it decreases my performance and ability to solve complex problems.
While I found that the book remained reasonably interesting I had to but it away for some time because I felt I had gotten stuck. Never a great feeling, but after some weeks I picked it up again and once more felt it delivered on its promise and premise. It caused me to revisit some of the things I do on a daily basis and how my actions are impacted by the distractions I face daily. Overall an interesting read.
While I found that the book remained reasonably interesting I had to but it away for some time because I felt I had gotten stuck. Never a great feeling, but after some weeks I picked it up again and once more felt it delivered on its promise and premise. It caused me to revisit some of the things I do on a daily basis and how my actions are impacted by the distractions I face daily. Overall an interesting read.
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews