I've found that, particularly lately, it is hard for me to just relax and let my mind wander. The shower seems to be a place that forces me to do so. Standing under the warm, massaging, cascading water just puts me at ease. It seems like at least everyday my mind starts to wander and ideas just start to pour out.
Just a couple of days ago I started thinking about a couple of old ideas and they just kind of fell into place as the building blocks of a new, more cohesive game concept.
How do you guys reach your own places of "zen" to think?
Asleep. If there is a difficult concept to learn or figure it helps me to spend a long time focusing on it, doing nothing else. Then I go to sleep. I then have related or unrelated vivid dreams. I then wake up with a better understanding and am able to easily penetrate other similar and difficult concepts.
Walking. Moving a way from the place where your frustrations have been concentrated is beneficial. It helps to sort of clear the mind and get a refreshed perspective.
Public Place. The internet is a distracting thing. A place like a park or a cafe with no internet, with people going about their business as background has a soothing effect. It allows one to stay productive for longer.