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Flow is an optimal state mind between boredom and anxiety where you perform your best and feel your best.
Flow is the experience of being so engaged in a task that you lose track of time.
4 Flow Factors
Conditions that lead to more flow at work
Focus Freedom
To access flow, “a person must concentrate attention on the “In flow there is no room for self‐scrutiny.” ‐ Mihaly
task at hand and momentarily forget everything else…Flow‐ Csikszentmihalyi
producing activities require an initial investment of attention
before (they) begin to be enjoyable.” ‐ Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi A rock climber Csikszentmihalyi interviewed said, “You can get
your ego mixed up with climbing in all sorts of ways…But
Enter flow at work by starting each task with a focus exercise to when things become automatic, it’s like an egoless
cultivate single‐pointed attention. thing…Somehow the right thing is done without you ever
thinking about it…”
Close your eyes and pay attention to music or your breathing
for a minute. When you open your eyes, direct that focus on the I find the best way to activate an egoless, judgment‐free state
task at hand. of mind is to set permission timers.
Think of your focus exercise like a warm‐up routine before a Throughout the day I start 10‐30‐minute countdowns and give
workout. The purpose is to make the transition from scattered myself permission to work without editing my work or
focus to single‐pointed focus smoother. critiquing my ideas. I generate ideas freely and trust my ability
to execute tasks on autopilot.
“Flow‐producing activities require an initial investment of
attention before (they) begin to be enjoyable.” ‐ Mihaly The goal is to get into a Zen‐like state and watch yourself
Csikszentmihalyi produce results automatically and effortlessly.
Feedback Four % Challenge
“The climber inching up a vertical wall of rock has a very If you're playing chess, you should play chess against players
simple goal in mind: to complete the climb without falling. who are rated just 4% higher than you.
Every second, hour after hour, he receives information that he
is meeting that basic goal.” ‐ Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi If you play a weaker player, you’ll win too easily and be bored. If
you play a Grandmaster like Magnus Carlson, you'll get crushed
Chess players in flow have the clear objective to mate the and find the experience frustrating and hopeless.
opponent's king before his king is mated. “With each move, he
can calculate whether he has come closer to this objective.” But if you compete against people who are just slightly better
than you (rated 4% higher than you), you know you can win if
To determine if your actions at work are moving you closer to you dig deep, dedicate your attention to the task at hand, and
your objective, you must give yourself feedback throughout the experience flow.
day.
If you adjust the difficulty of work tasks to be slightly harder
I do this by setting an hour alarm. When the alarm goes off, I than what you can do comfortably, you might find flow.
ask myself, “What did I accomplish in the last hour?” and “What
can I accomplish in the next hour?” If you can comfortably write 1000 words in 25 minutes,
push yourself to complete 1000 words in 24 minutes.
This hourly check‐in helps me clarify my goals and determine if If you can comfortably clean the kitchen in 20 minutes,
my actions align with my goals. These brief check‐in’s help me push yourself to do it 30 seconds faster.
find the flow sweet spot (the four percent challenge).
You’ll know if your challenge is in the 4% zone if half the time
you meet expectations and half the time you don’t.
“Most enjoyable activities are not natural; they demand an effort that initially one is reluctant to make. But
once the interaction starts to provide feedback to the person's skills, it usually begins to be intrinsically
rewarding.” ‐ Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
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