There are certainly a lot of single-minded individuals who think just churning out lines of business logic will get them ahead, and I think most would agree that doesn't work in the long run.
But there is also that crowd of people who know that a more holistic set of experiences helps them get ahead in their career.
> Kayaker is ... allowing their subconscious to solve the difficult problems while they are consciously enjoying nature
To an extent taking your mind off a problem and mulling over it helps. But there's no subconscious doing the work, in the end spending the weekend thinking about a problem with a few breaks will definitely make more progress than a weekend Kayaking and not thinking about work.
When I was in school I had epiphanies or "click" moments on several occasions either while I slept or while I was at the gym staring off into space and lifting weights with no other thoughts in my head. So from my personal experiences I do think that our unconscious mind works at some level solving problems.
But there is also that crowd of people who know that a more holistic set of experiences helps them get ahead in their career.
> Kayaker is ... allowing their subconscious to solve the difficult problems while they are consciously enjoying nature
To an extent taking your mind off a problem and mulling over it helps. But there's no subconscious doing the work, in the end spending the weekend thinking about a problem with a few breaks will definitely make more progress than a weekend Kayaking and not thinking about work.