Great post, Christina! I have always found the shower to be a very productive thought-place. I think there, pray there, and come up with some great insights there! Perhaps I shouldn't admit this, because you may think I'm not paying attention then, but I find driving to have a similar effect for me. I learned long ago, when I was frequently writing poetry, to keep a recorder in the car, so that I could record my thoughts to save for a later time.

However, neither of those solutions work very well for the company setting. But one place I worked was great! We had a Foosball table in the break room. It was common to find people there for 10 or 15 minutes at a time, playing the game, but working as well; brainstorming, sharing ideas, discussing things openly, and having fun. Somehow the competition of the game took away the competition of the conference room table. It didn't matter who had the best idea or the winning solution. The playing field was level, and anyone who wanted to join in (whether part of the team charged with finding the solution or not!) could contribute.

That was probably one of the most effective, corporate setting, productivity tools I've ever experienced!