This material is for informational and educational purposes only and is not medical, psychological, or psychotherapeutic advice. If you are experiencing an acute psychological condition or need professional support, please contact a doctor, psychologist, psychotherapist, or crisis service.
By doing what we love, we can experience a state of flow. Flow state - only two conditions are necessary for this: doing a favorite thing and constantly increasing the level of difficulty of this thing
How does a flow state lead to happiness and success?
1. The stream is pleasant in its flow.
Many people who have described the flow state have said that the state is similar to ecstasy. This is pure creativity. Most often, this is growth in new and unexpected directions. In a state of flow, people find new, creative, and original ways to use their talents. People like the state of flow, they like to feel it, and that alone makes people happy.
2. Flow increases charisma
The flow is contagious. A person in a state of flow emits a "flow light." I think every one of you has been to concerts. And each of you can tell with precision when the speaker felt a sense of flow and when he did not. When a star is in flux, this state is transmitted to the audience as well, at such concerts everyone's emotions are over the edge, and the memory of this concert is imprinted for years to come. And vice versa, when the artist is not in the flow, you do not get a charge of energy, it seems that he did not give his best, did not finish the work.
Another example. We tend to trust more attractive people. Therefore, when we meet an unsympathetic person, our first reaction is distrust. But as soon as this unsympathetic person starts talking about his favorite thing or starts demonstrating it, the feeling of admiration that comes from him is transmitted to others. And after the end of his story or demonstration, he does not seem so unsympathetic to you, sometimes this person even becomes attractive.
Dr. Raja Raghunathan conducted an experiment with his students. He showed them a photo of a girl and asked them to rate her appearance, after which he showed a video of the girl. The grades were very low, but after watching the video of the same girl's performance, the students' grades became much higher. The same reaction occurred with the judges and the audience in the hall.
3. The flow is not leveled by anything
Mihai Csikszentmihalyi, who discovered the "flow", talks about it like this: "One of the advantages of the flow is that it is not leveled by anything. Any other reward you receive is nullified by someone else's failure. If you have a lot of money, someone probably doesn't have much. And the only way to feel good is to have something more than others, such as power or prestige. So, most extrinsic rewards are offset by something. And in order to enjoy the flow, you should not depend on the fact that others are worse than you. In fact, you allow them to experience the energy of your flow for themselves because it is contagious.
When you flow, people like you because they don't feel any threat, hurt or jealousy from you. Your stream cannot affect a stream in any way, your stream will not make someone else's stream less. It is a limitless resource, unlike other resources such as feelings of superiority, money, power, strength, etc. The amount of money is of course, and you stop feeling joy from receiving it as soon as your basic needs are covered. The same happens with power and popularity. The number of glossy covers that can have your photo is limited.
4. Flow helps achieve mastery
One of the conditions of the flow is that the constant complication of the task will necessarily lead to mastery. 10,000 hours of streaming experience in your field will surely lead you to mastery, you will become an expert in your field. That's why people succeed, not because they're trying to outdo someone else. They simply spend at least 10,000 hours in flow and hone their craft.
Flow is pleasant, flow increases charisma, flow is not leveled by anything and helps to become a master of one's craft. Doesn't remind anyone? Take any successful person. He has a favorite business, charisma, he does not compete with anyone and he is a master of his craft. And all this thanks to the stream. And we can experience the flow only by doing what we love.
People do not become successful and then look for a hobby to become happy. People find work for their soul, do it for a long time and become successful and happy.
If you are interested in reading more about the 10,000 hour rule, you can read Malcolm Gladwell's book Geniuses and Underdogs: Why Some Have Everything and Others Nothing.
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi described deep engagement with focused attention, clear goals, available feedback, and a rough match between challenge and skill. Time perception may change.
Deep creative engagement
The balance moves
Tasks that are too easy may bore; those that are too difficult may overwhelm. The fitting point varies, and familiar work can become excessive under sleep loss or chronic stress.
Flow is not productivity
A person may be absorbed in activity that conflicts with values or harms health. Flow describes engagement, not moral worth or guaranteed external success.
Words from Dmytro Telushko
“Flow does not have to be chased as a special state. It is more useful to shape clarity, workable challenge, skill, feedback, and permission to stop.”
Dmytro Telushko
Observing conditions
The Emotions Journal EQ helps identify tasks that focus attention and those that overwhelm or disengage.
Emotions Journal EQ