In Flow, Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, the author, dissects what “flow” is and how we can reach it.
Very briefly, flow can be defined as “the state of mind in which we lose ourselves in our work”.
Flow Summary
About the Author:
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, together with Martin Seligman, is often considered one of the founders of Positive Psychology, which is the branch of psychology studying happiness, satisfaction, and self-development.
How to Reach Flow
These are the steps you need to take to reach a flow state:
- Clarity of goals: your work must have a purpose and an end state. If your work is too big, you must identify smaller goals
- Immediate feedback: immediate feedback helps us stay fully focused by “gamifying” our experience
- Engage at the edge of your ability: when it’s too difficult, we become frustrated, and when it’s too easy, we’re bored. Right in the middle is where flow happens
- Do it because you want: you can’t reach a flow state when you are executing orders you are not happy to follow. Doing it without direct expectations for material rewards is even better
Learn more about how to handle disempowering orders:
And, finally:
- Mental mastery: ultimately, it’s up to you to enter flow. It requires a certain control of your mind, which you can achieve with trial and error, meditation, and training
Csikszentmihalyi indeed invites people to look for opportunities in their lives in which they can create the elements of flow.
For example, instead of just folding clothes out of boredom, focus on doing it better, or quicker.
While shopping, focus on doing it in the most efficient way possible.
How Flow Feels Like
How do you know if you are reaching flow?
Here is what flow feels like:
- Total immersion: during flow, you don’t even realize what’s happening around you
- Focus and concentration: you are fully focused on your task
- Time flies: when you’re in flow, you don’t even realize time passing by, so it feels like time flies
- Feels good: flow is a rewarding state in itself. It gives you a sense of control over your work, which spills over into a sense of control over your life. And you don’t care about problems, worries, or what others think of you
Flow Personalities
A few personality traits are more likely to get you into a state of flow.
These include:
- Growth mindset: people with a growth mindset are more likely to seek and enjoy challenges (check out “how to develop a growth mindset“)
- Clarity of purpose: find a goal in what you’re doing, and find a goal and a WHY for your life (also read “Start with WHY” and “Man’s Search for Meaning“)
- Openness to criticism: being ego-resilient and open to honest feedback allows you to take all feedback and opportunities for improvement (also read “Thanks for The Feedback“)
- Locus of control: feeling like you are the one who chooses what to do and you have the power to change your life’s predicament
- Focus: being able to focus on one activity at a time without distractions is a crucial element for reaching flow (also read “The One Thing” and “Essentialism“)
Flow Is Enjoyment, Not Pleasure
Pleasures are reactions to specific actions that are good for our survival or procreation.
Food and sex are typical pleasures.
But chasing pleasure can lead to addiction and never moving forward in life.
Enjoyment, instead, makes us better people while we are also feeling great.
My Note:
I only partially agree with this one. In the end, this is a major over-simplification. Read my “criticism of Flow” below.
Real-Life Applications
In my opinion, there is one crucial lesson to learn to improve your life:
- Internalize that you always have a choice
You cannot enter flow when you are following orders or doing things that you don’t really want to do.
And it’s not just about “flow”, it’s about efficiency, mood, life pleasure, and success as well.
This was a major issue for me: the moment the alarm rang, I hated it and felt like I was “forced” to get up and prepare for work.
The moment I forced myself to change my attitude, I became happier and more effective.
Always remind yourself that you have a choice. And if you are doing something, it’s because you are choosing to do it.
Flow Criticism
I enjoyed the book, yet I also have some important criticisms of “Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience”.
Here are the main ones:
- Flimsy connection between flow and happiness?
Flow is considered one of the very first books on positive psychology.
Since then, it’s been computed into several “happiness formulas” in many successive books. Mostly by non-psychologists, but, notably, Martin Seligman also included it in his happiness formula (see: “Flourish“).
However, I still don’t see such a strong connection between flow and a happy life.
While flow certainly wouldn’t make anyone sadder, I also don’t see how it can be a central part of a happy life.
The author says that the best moments in our lives occur during flow, but that’s his own personal feeling, and he has no data or other way of backing it up.
- Flow has limited utility when mastering a craft
Today, it seems to me that everyone is obsessed with “flow”. Yet, by the author’s own description, a state of “flow” is only achievable when you’re doing a task you’re already good at.
There is no point in seeking “flow” when you’re learning, which is what you should probably be doing most of the time unless you’re already world-class (and let’s face it: we’re probably not there yet).
- Flow is not easily applicable to all realms of life
Some activities, like team activities, are more easily conducive to flow. And some activities, by presenting immediate and obvious feedback, are also more conducive to flow.
That also means that some other activities are not as easily conducive to flow.
And personally, I found some recommendations to reach flow anytime and anywhere borderline ridiculous.
Trying to grocery shop or fold T-shirts to achieve flow didn’t seem like it added anything to life.
I personally feel it’s much better to grocery shop while listening to some music and/or looking at and interacting with the people around.
- Silly differentiation between “pleasure” and “enjoyment”
The author seems to have an agenda to promote “enjoyment” over “base pleasures”.
And he says that pleasures don’t make us better.
To me, that’s hogwash. Sex, a pleasure, does make you better with physical activities, and, as any woman can tell you, there are ways to improve your technical skills, so it’s not true that pleasures don’t make you improve.
And even eating can be seen as a skill or, as well, as an art. Slowing down to enjoy it for longer, for example, or chewing better, which will help you digest better.
- Why should you do anything without expecting something else?
One of Csikszentmihalyi’s tenets for “flow” is doing it without any expectations of receiving anything back.
I don’t think it’s realistic—or even advisable—to simply “do things without expecting a return”.
What’s the point of doing anything if you don’t expect something as a result or as a consequence of your hard work?
I am writing this summary because I expect it will be helpful to people reading it.
If not, it will be helpful to make myself remember the crucial steps to reaching flow.
And if all goes well, it will help me do both while also contributing to making me financially independent.
And I think there is nothing wrong with that, -and I don’t think it stops me in any way from achieving “writing flow”.
PROS
I have listed a lot of criticism for “Flow”. Yet, I also believe that the ability to focus fully on one’s own work is crucial to success.
And also to a happier, flourishing life.
That’s what I am grateful to “Flow” for: giving me a few pointers to make it easier for me to fully focus on a specific task or activity.
Mihaly TED Talk
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi also has a TED talk on flow:
If Csikszentmihalyi is in flow and experiencing ”enjoyment,” he is surely hiding it well there 🙂
Flow Review
Flow is a hugely popular concept these days, so I was very curious to review the original work.
I liked it, but also found that “flow” has a limited scope (or, better: it’s been so overhyped that it expanded beyond its original scope).
For example, if you want to learn and improve, you shouldn’t be focusing on reaching flow, which only happens when you’re already good at something; you should focus on your weakness.
Working on your weaknesses is not necessarily enjoyable, but it’s what will take you forward in life.
In my opinion, since flow is so dependent on so many variables that are not always under your control, it’s not good to obsess over “flow“.
Instead, it’s better to focus on total immersion in your work (also read: Deep Work).
The two are similar, but total immersion does not necessarily need all the steps that Csikszentmihalyi lists in “Flow” while giving you all the same benefits.
Check the:
