Find your flow
What is flow state?
Flow is when you have that magical experience of becoming so immersed in your focus on a task, be that for pleasure or work, that you forget about all other distractions, including the time! I know I am in flow when I am not conscious of where my phone is - tragic, I know.
Csikszentmihalyi, author of Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience, described it as the pleasure, delight, creativity and process when we are completely immersed in life.
I love the notion that we can be so present in life that we access a new dimension.
Can you instinctively think of something you do in your life that delivers you to flow state?
If you love to read, you know that feeling when you become so engulfed by a book that you miss a meal, unable to put it down.
If you are amazing at coding (or even amazing at learning to code) you might not realise that it is all of a sudden dark outside as you figure out how to set up that landing page just right.
From what I understand avid bakers and chefs enter flow state in the kitchen. I'm too busy checking recipes every 2 seconds to get there myself, but I can understand how it happens.
How to achieve it?
There is a magical mixture of feeling challenged but knowing you are capable and willing to see something through to completion. I love that feeling. It is so stimulating as well as satisfying.
Accessing flow requires you to:
have a clear outcome that you're working towards.
be challenged
be cognisant of your progress as you work through
use your skillset
be free from distractions
The power
Letting go of ego, becoming incommunicado and being deeply and truly present is a magnificent feeling. True pleasure.
In so much of the self development work I do with clients we talk about seeking a life that is value and purpose aligned.
Figuring out what takes you to flow state, will also create a clear map to that purpose aligned life. They are all a part of the same endeavour. Living a fulfilling life and achieving something (that is hopefully of service to others).
If you find mindfulness challenging, I strongly encourage you to seek flow state. It is ultimately a form of switching off the conscious mind and letting go of ego - the same as meditating.
If you've ever found yourself enter flow through writing or mindfulness, or would like to see if it is possible, then I'd like to invite you to join our 14 day journal challenge starting Monday. 14 days, 14 emails. 14 journal entries.
Some recommended reading on the topic:
Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
Ikigai by Hector Garcia and Francesc Miralles
