Have you ever felt completely immersed in an activity? Were you so focused on what you were doing that time passed by, but you didn’t even notice? If that ever happened to you, you were experiencing a state of flow—intense involvement in an activity when nothing else seems to matter.
Interestingly, in a letter to his son, Albert Einstein advised him to do things in flow state: “That is the way to learn the most, that when you are doing something with such enjoyment that you don’t notice that the time passes. I am sometimes so wrapped up in my work that I forget about the noon meal . . .” In addition, science shows experiencing flow is pleasurable to us and contributes to our life satisfaction.
However, to even have the opportunity to experience flow, some requirements must be met. Research has found that the most important thing is the relationship between your skill level and the level of the challenge. For instance, you probably won’t reach flow if you are reading a plainly written book in your native language. Instead, you could feel bored while reading it. For different reasons, your friend that you met on vacation in Japan, who speaks almost no English, won’t feel it either. He will probably feel anxious because, for him, this book will be too challenging. However, if you pick a book about a topic that you are interested in and know something about, your skills and the challenge will both be on the same level, making it more likely for you to reach the zone. And, after taking an English course, your friend can reach it, too, by reading some less challenging English books. Therefore, if you wish to experience flow, you should be mindful to do things that present a reasonable challenge for you.
Another requirement for flow is a clear sign that represents a job well done. For example, if you’re competing in a basketball game, it’s scoring more points than the other team. If you are writing an important paper for work, it’s a finished paper. Whatever it is, you must set a clear end point for yourself that tells you when an activity you are doing is finished. Furthermore, you must have clear and immediate feedback on your progress.
Also, when participating in an activity, you should feel in control; you must take over the reins. If you feel capable of doing something, there’s a bigger chance of experiencing a state of flow. To give you an idea, when you’re swimming in an almost empty swimming pool, you’re in control of your movements—you can decide in which direction you’ll swim. All you need to do is focus on your breathing and your technique. However, when swimming in a crowded pool, you must be constantly mindful of the people around you. You’re no longer in complete control of your surroundings.
Taken together, now that you know what elements can put you in a state of flow, you can redesign your activities to increase the odds of you reaching it. Remember, flow can be experienced in many different situations, even while washing the dishes, or working in sales. Therefore, you must make the most of your time by doing things that challenge you, make you feel in control, and provide you with clear goals and feedback. In a nutshell, because of its positive consequences and the sheer pleasure of it, it is worth either finding activities that put you in a state of flow or redesigning the existing ones to reach it.
References:
Csikszentmihalyi, M. (2008). Finding flow. BasicBooks.
“That is the way to learn the most”: McCullough, L. D. (2004). Posterity: Letters of great Americans to their children. Anchor.
experiencing flow is pleasurable to us and contributes to our life satisfaction: Landhäußer, A.,& Keller, J. (2012). Flow and its affective, cognitive, and performance-related consequences. In: S. Engeser (Ed.) Advances in flow research (pp. 65–85). Springer.
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-2359-1_4
the most important thing is the relationship between your skill level and the level of the challenge: Fong, C. J., Zaleski, D. J.,& Leach, J. K. (2014). The challenge–skill balance and antecedents of flow: A meta-analytic investigation. The Journal of Positive Psychology, 10(5), 425–446.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17439760.2014.967799
Another requirement for flow is a clear sign: Nakamura, J.,& Csikszentmihalyi, M. (2014). The concept of flow. In: M. Csikszentmihalyi (Ed.), Flow and the foundations of positive psychology (pp. 239–263). Springer.
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-9088-8_16
you must have clear and immediate feedback: Nakamura, J.,& Csikszentmihalyi, M. (2014). The concept of flow. In: M. Csikszentmihalyi (Ed.), Flow and the foundations of positive psychology (pp. 239–263). Springer.
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-9088-8_16
you should feel in control: Nakamura, J.,& Csikszentmihalyi, M. (2014). The concept of flow. In: M. Csikszentmihalyi (Ed.), Flow and the foundations of positive psychology (pp. 239–263). Springer.
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-9088-8_16