When I travel from my home in Phoenix to Los Angeles or San Diego, I almost always drive. With all the hassle of flying, it is just easier (and many times quicker) to drive. The side benefit is I get a lot of time behind the wheel to just think.

A few days ago the CEO of ebay, John Donahue, wrote a piece entitled To Beat the Chaos, Take a Thinking Day. In it, he describes how he schedules a day every few months to do nothing but think.

In addition to my drive to and from the West Coast, I take a “thinking break” nearly every day and sometimes multiple times a day. It is about a mile to walk around my block and there is a big hill in the middle of the walk. This gives me a nice little workout, but also time to think about the problem of the day or to brainstorm about ideas for future projects. This time is invaluable to me and I always come back to the computer invigorated in all ways after the walk. OK, I’m sometimes a bit sweaty in the summer months.

In today’s world, it is easy to work long hours to get ahead. If you aren’t already scheduling some thinking time, it is something that could be really helpful to you.