“Don’t ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive because what the world needs is more people who come alive.” – Howard Thurman
When we perform at our best, the experience feels magical. The moment is massively rewarding, and after, we feel an afterglow of pride from our accomplishment, feeling like our truest self. If we have experienced such, we were likely in a state of flow.
Flow is supercharged performance. We move faster, learn quicker, intuit better, and create more, facilitating rapid improvement and revolutionizing our craft. It is the ultimate performance experience.
But most importantly, flow makes us happier and satisfied with our lives. Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, the father of flow psychology, dedicated his life to researching human life satisfaction and well-being. Across culture, age, and demographics, he discovered the individuals most satisfied with life reported the highest amounts of flow. They exhibited personalities rooted in the present moment, choosing experience over outcomes. They enjoyed their craft, but loved how they did it most.
Flow is a state of consciousness in which we feel and perform optimally. It is known by many names like “peak performance,” “runners high,” or “in the zone.” During flow states, time dilates; hours can pass like seconds or slow to a halt. We are completely absorbed with our task, undisturbed to outside influences. Our sense of self recedes. Even the level of effort is reported as effortless despite being at the top of our performance. Flow, hence the name, feels flowy.
Neurologically, flow is an altered state of consciousness. Blood flow decreases to the brain and specific regions will activate while others shut down. For example, the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, which is responsible for self monitoring, deactivates. Beta waves – normal waking consciousness – disappear and alpha plus theta pulse in unison. Flow states release a cocktail of hormones like dopamine, norepinephrine, serotonin, and endorphins. Compared to normal consciousness, flow is a separate realm with peculiar brain activity
The 3 prerequisites to flow are motivation, learning, and creativity. Motivation gives us the fuel to play; learning develops our skills; creativity revolutionizes our craft. Triggers, or cues, facilitate entry into the flow state. These are internal, external, creative, or social stimuli which nudge the brain toward flow. Research has identified 22, and there are likely more, but the core 3 include clear goals, immediate feedback, and the challenge-skills balance.
Flow requires direction, and clear goals provide it. The emphasis is on the ‘clear.’ Our goals need to be specific and, if possible, quantitative. For example, a weak goal is “to be a better shooter,” but a clear goal is “to shoot over 40% from the 3-point line.” Clear goals also need to outline the path toward achievement by stating the number of engagements. To continue with the basketball analogy, we can say “I will make 200 3-pointers a day.” The point is the goal is directional, provides a metric for judgment, and specifies the number of engagements.
Next, we need immediate feedback. Constant and repetitive feedback is like a compass. It will keep us on track or return us to course if we waiver. Using our quantitative metric, we can better track performance in real time and make adjustments as needed. We identify hindrances and positives like poor sleep or adequate nutrition to fine tune variables that benefit performance. Ideally, we also have a coach or teacher capable of pointing us in the correct direction, especially if our goal is more qualitative. These figures provide years of accumulated knowledge which will keep us away from common pitfalls and accelerate our learning toward expertise.
Between anxiety and boredom, our sweet spot exists. This is known as the challenge-skills balance, and it encapsulates growth mindset and compound interest. When engaging with a task, if the stimulus is too low, boredom will occur, but if the challenge is too great, anxiety will cloud our judgment. By aiming slightly beyond our current skill level, we promote maximum focus and facilitate consistent and manageable improvement. Research suggests 4% is ideal, but the main objective is to aim slightly beyond our current skill level. Anything more or less will cause anxiety or boredom.
Flow is, and is not, the ultimate goal of performance. This is because flow is a paradox. Like happiness, flow is not something to pursue. Rather, it ensues as a consequence of actions. The more we seek flow the less we find it; the more we prime and focus on a process the more flow flows.
