Playing basketball on a dirty court is like running on an ice rink.

Because of this, my high school basketball coach would mop the floor before every practice. He would get three or four towels good and wet, wring them out in the sink and then fasten them to an industrial-sized swiffer.

He would then walk his makeshift mop up and down the court, covering all 3,108 square feet of the floor. Once we took to the court after school was out, the floor was so spotless and adherent, our sneakers squealed and squeaked as we ran through our drills.

If your creative work is the game of basketball, your mental and emotional state is the court. I have found it to be extraordinarily difficult to get good creative work done when the floors of my mind haven't been properly cleaned.

Tending to your mental floors is about wiping your mind clean so that you can think creatively without the risk of slipping.