”Thomas Edison valued this hypnogogic state so highly that he developed his own technique to maintain it while he worked on his inventions”wrote Brian Weiss, in his book Through Time into Healing.
“While sitting in a certain chair, Edison used relaxation and meditation techniques to reach the state of consciousness that is between sleep and wakefulness. He would hold some ball bearings in his closed hand, palm down, while resting this hand on the arm of his chair.”
“Beneath his hand he kept a metal bowl. If Edison fell asleep, his hand would open. The ball bearings would fall into the metal bowl and the noise would awaken him. Then he would repeat the process over and over again.”
In this semi wake state he would then put his ideas to paper.
Likewise, James Watt, unsure how to make engine parts rotate smoothly, dreamt of molten metal fragments falling down from the sky forming into globes as they fell. The idea of drop calling was born and ball bearings were made.
Elias Howe dreamt of people holding spears with an eye-shaped hole in its flattened point.
The result was the chain stitch sewing machine was born.
August Kekule von Stradonitz, dreamt of snakes swallowing their tails and formulated the molecular ring structure of benzene.
Albert Einstein, used a process called "combinatorial play," where he would float complex formulas around in his mind until they formed a pattern. Late in life, even Edison owned up to taking chair-borne naps whenever he needed to crystallize his thoughts.
Creativity empowers our technological society and yet it is often devalued.
To do this ”creativity must go beyond the bounds of what already is known or deductible by reason” said Dr. Arnold M. Ludwig.

Perhaps we need to stop slaving ourselves in methodical logical fashion and inspire our creativity.