Well, we don't guarantee that any of the below will work for you -- all we can say is that smarter people than us have gotten them to work under scientifically controlled conditions. They also happen to cost absolutely nothing, so if you need to force you brain to start thinking outside the box, try to ...

There might not be a worse feeling than when you have some kind of huge project due and the creative part of your brain just slowly grinds to a halt. Some people have little rituals they go through to try to jump-start their muse, from "take a relaxing walk" to "steal someone else's idea and then secretly murder them." But why not look to science to figure out what actually works?

5 Work at the Worst Time of the Day, With the Worst People

Andrea Chu/Digital Vision/Getty Images

When it comes to solving problems, we like to think we know how to get the best results out of ourselves. We know if we're morning people or not, and the types of people we work well with. When we're in college, we choose our class schedules around the time of day our brains work best, and pick out our own study groups based on the unique blend of introverts, extroverts, and Asians that we know will complement us best. In the professional world, the more success you achieve, the more freedom you get to choose who you work with and when.

Continue Reading Below Advertisement

Well, science is here to do what science does best and tell us that we're doing it all wrong. As we've covered briefly before, you are actually way better at solving problems that require creativity and insight if you work on them during the time of day when you think you're at your worst. When you're telling everyone not to bother talking to you until you've had another cup of coffee, it turns out your mind is at its most brilliant.

Thomas Northcut/Lifesize/Getty Images

"4 p.m. already? Just give me a little more time -- I can't do anything at all before six."

Continue Reading Below Advertisement

In one study, morning people actually performed better at problem-solving when they were brought into the lab at night, whereas night people scored better during the morning sessions.

Christopher Robbins/Digital Vision/Getty Images

"Wait, pickles with hamburgers stuffed in the middle!"

We're also pretty bad at judging how well we're working within a group -- studies found that people were worse at solving problems in groups with those that they felt most comfortable. Even weirder, the groups that had a merry old time fucking up the problem they were supposed to be solving had no idea. According to the study, "The teams that felt they worked least effectively together were ironically the top performers."