Jeff Bezos’ secret to a clear, focused mind is… doodling?
By Jessica Stillman | Published: 2025-11-03 10:45:00 | Source: Inc.com
Many founders and CEOs are known for their high-octane morning routines. Not Jeff Bezos. The founder spends the first hours of his day “fooling around.”
“I like to read the newspaper, I like to drink coffee, and I like to have breakfast with my kids before they go to school. Spending time is very important to me.” Bezos He explained back in 2018. According to his wife, Lauren Sanchez, his mornings are still focused on slow, offline gaming today
Sipping your coffee while watching the news sounds like fun. But Bezos doesn’t walk around in the morning just because he’s a billionaire who can do whatever he wants. In the same interview, he explained that his relaxing morning routine helps him clear his mind and focus so that he can make high-quality decisions during the day.
For productivity freaks, play may seem like the opposite of focused effectiveness. But psychology says Bezos is on to something. Absurdity may, by definition, be aimless and small in scale. But science is clear that it can also help our brains function at their best
Mode as mindÂ
The hectic modern world means that most of us spend a significant portion of our time reviewing a to-do list that never ends. This frenetic turning of the mental wheels can be productive. But it leaves little room for contemplation, creativity, or simple appreciation for the small pleasures of the present moment.
On the other hand, walking around doing this and that works as a form of mindfulness. It stops the fluctuations in our brains a little, leaving room for thoughts and even contentment to emerge.
“Stuttering is a gesture of respect from our brains for our physical selves. It is not about thinking, reading, or producing. Instead, we take on ‘meaningless tasks’ that need only minimal brain engagement. We are aware of our surroundings, think about what makes us comfortable, and tend toward those things, no matter how aimless they may be.” Author Sophia Dembling in Psychology Today.Â
We grind our teeth through hard housework. In contrast, swiping is a series of low-risk victories that we undertake for the sheer satisfaction they bring. Our attention is on the task while we do it. This present focus calms the mind in a “profoundly therapeutic” way, Dembling says.
Freed from all constraints, my mind wandered at its own pace and in its own way, opening up and creating a space through which new ideas could flow. “It was comforting, refreshing, and rejuvenating,” she wrote of her own caress.
Research backs Jeff Bezos
Studies agree that hitting is a low-key but effective way to focus yourself
For example, the researchers showed volunteers that washing dishes could serve as a form of mindfulness if they simply focused on the sensory details of the task, the warmth of boiling water, and the sparkle of a clean plate. Afterwards, participants reported that six minutes of this daily chore reduced their stress by 27 percent and increased their inspiration by 25 percent.
Play turns out to be a state of mind, a way of approaching whatever simple task is before us. When we approach these tasks in this mindful way, we gain some of the same calming and creativity-enhancing effects as more formal mindfulness practices like meditation.
Perhaps that’s why, at least in 2014, Jeff Bezos also claimed to wash the dishes himself every night.
Doodling as an anti-anxiety intervention
“Play has to do with cleaning and organizing; but it’s not those things. “You start by identifying an itch in your personal space: something like a jar that holds a lot of different kinds of things, or a rack of dishes where you can see a layer of dust under everything,” cartoonist Sophie Lucido Johnson wrote in an essay. A poem for her husband’s gift to put on the medium.Â
One of the great joys of hanging out, she continues, is the joy of scratching that itch. The ability to correct a simple mistake, to remind yourself that you can be effective in the world, is another scientifically backed benefit of the Bezos method.
“Unlike other distracting activities – such as playing computer games or watching trashy TV – play also has the advantage of being proactive and beneficial, increasing our ‘perceived control.’ BBC explains. Reports suggest that a small shot of strength when organizing a waste drawer, for example, reduces physical signs of stress in the body. Â
Feeling more in control in small ways, calms us down. This sets us up for greater and more difficult exercises of agency and control later. And if our racket makes our environment more organized, so much the better. Visually less crowded spaces As well as calming our brains, Science appears.Â
“In general, you see much greater brain activity as the number of distracting objects within a scene increases,” notes the BBC. “This may cause your brain to become tired of it She struggles to maintain her focus Over long periods of concentration
If Jeff Bezos makes time to hang out, so can you
Take all of this together and you have solid evidence that Jeff Bezos doesn’t just enjoy his life when he walks around every morning. (Though he probably does that too, which is a perfectly fine goal.) He also practices a simple, practical form of mindfulness that helps reset his brain and prepare him for the day ahead.
If an industry titan like Bezos can justify spending time gaming every day, then surely you can give yourself permission to play too. Your brain will probably thank you
The opinions expressed by Inc.com columnists here are their own, not those of Inc.com.
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