Have you ever felt like you're just not getting anything done? This is not uncommon. Finding that flow can be difficult. If I was to give just one tip, that would be try your best to create momentum every day to manage your energy. What does it feel like sitting on your couch and watching TV, that's not even interests you, aimlessly scrolling on social media or just meaninglessly wasting your time? To start moving as usual, the key is doing the things you've been putting off. Those things can be small or big, mundane or extravagant, routine or daring. But the important part is that they get done. To get started, set your goal of what you want to do each day and prioritize to find your flow state.
What Is Flow State?
You may have heard about, or even experienced flow state. It is a trance like state of consciousness, that some people reach while doing complex and captivating tasks. Some people experience this state even when just doing simple tasks like shopping or driving. Flow states are thought to be beneficial as it can increase productivity as well as prevent unwanted thought, such as boredom or anxiety. Primarily achieved through the correct activity, it has been proven to increase confidence and self-esteem. Though there are many, who believe it is an uncommon occurrence and has little effect on the human brain.
Here are a few suggestions on how you can achieve flow state:
Do something you love: This can be as simple as playing an instrument, writing an epic poem, or even cleaning. Anything it is just make sure it is something you find captivating.
Take a break from technology: Sounds weird but true. If you are spending most of your time on social media, then maybe taking a break would give you a fresh start on achieving your goals.
Challenge yourself: Every so often, try a new activity or take a class, that is out of your comfort zone.
Make a schedule: Set aside a specific time everyday to work on your goals.
Why Do We Miss The Flow?
As with anything, there's a risk of experiencing a drop in productivity. If you overwork or burn yourself out, then your mind can't recover. This can lead to stress and other mental illnesses such as depression. Though it is important to take breaks, it is equally important to balance the work and the play.
Not everyone is meant to be an overworked genius type. Just because you are not prone to being a bit eccentric with the smallest amount of resources at hand does not mean you cannot achieve your goals and live a happy life.
The key is to identify your strengths and build on them. If you think you might be good at public speaking, then speak in front of people or organize a public gathering. If you have a talent for computing, then learn how to code or find a job working with computers. A happy medium can be achieved with the use of your time.
Flow And Your Productivity
Now that you know what flow state is and how to achieve it, it's time to look at how you can get the most out of this state for productivity. The process is similar to how you achieve flow state. You pick an activity you enjoy, an activity that challenges you but does not excessively stress you. Then you practice that activity until you feel a sense of mastery or excellence. You then master the activity in a continuous cycle until you feel completely confident and competent in that area.
For flow state to be at its peak, a person should only engage in that activity. This is counter intuitive as most of us have a to do list, that is constantly growing and demanding our attention. A person will constantly feel the need to practice what they are doing in order to get better. However, the more a person engages in that activity, the better they become at that activity. Over time, a person masters that activity and stops improving further. This is because a person's abilities have reached their peak and no longer can get any better.
Practicing an activity repeatedly, but not regularly, allows for the new aspects of that activity to not become rote. You will still improve your abilities with such approach, but it can take longer to achieve mastery. This is due to the fact, that you are continually trying to break new ground. With this in mind, you need to choose which type of practice will work best for you and your situation.
The Four Stages Of Flow
There are four basic types of practice. I will overview each briefly below.
1. Mindful Practice
This is when you are fully aware of what you are doing. This can be achieved through the application of effort in the present moment. You can also achieve this state through an external source. For example, you can be practicing a sport in which you are only allowed to focus on the present activity and not think about past or future. You simply have to be in the current action. Alternatively, you can practice a mental activity such as an eidetic memory or logic problem.
Why Mindful Practice?
This type of practice is useful for many reasons, but I mention two of those below.
Time Effective: You can improve your performance in an activity faster with this approach.
Reduction of Stress: Because you are being more present and aware of what you are doing it reduces stress on the body. This can lead to a deeper state of concentration.
2. Refined Practice
Refined practice can be done alone or with a group. This form of practice involves the repetition of an activity with slight variations. This is best achieved through training or a feedback system. If training for an activity, one can perfect their craft by repeating the same task again and again with small variations. For example, a professional football player might do hundreds of knee-bent drops into a football pocked with their legs until they reach a refined level of movement.
Why Refined Practice?
If you're trying to perfect an activity, refined practice is most likely the way to go. If a person masters refined practice, then they can perfect their craft. However, if a person continues to refine their practice, then they will begin to lose the essence of flow state. This is due to the fact, that refined practice has been proven to lead to flow.
The major problem in continuing refined practice is that you may begin to lose the enjoyment or flow state. This can be very dangerous as it takes the person away from their core value and reason for practicing in the first place. This can lead to burn out, in which the person stops trying in general. It can also lead to boredom, which can be deadly if engaging in a dangerous activity.
In some cases, a person may try to perfect an activity to the point, where it becomes impossible to achieve flow. For example, a master chess player may practice thousands of moves until they reach a point, where they cannot gain or maintain a state of flow. Practicing this way may lead to a state of boredom and a loss of enjoyment in the activity.
3. Auto Practice
Auto practice is when a person creates their own practice based on what they want to accomplish. It is most effective, if the person creating the practice is informed of what they want to achieve. They may also benefit from seeking out a coach or teacher to provide feedback.
Why Auto Practice?
This method can work, but it is limited. The biggest limitation is a lack of information. If you create your practice without knowing what you are doing or why you are doing it, then you can easily get lost or frustrated. For example, a person may want to improve their public speaking abilities. They may go out and try to give a speech to a group.
They may gather feedback from people, who were in the crowd and made comments about what they thought of the speech. They can continue making speeches to groups and getting feedback until they feel good about the speech. This may take weeks, months or even years. They still do not know why they are doing what they are doing. They might feel good after a speech, but it's very difficult to know why they enjoyed it so much.
In these types of situations, auto practice can be very effective. These are the situations in which a person should choose to engage in flow state activity, rather than refined or mindful activity.
4. Auto Training
Auto training is a combination of the other types of practice. Auto training involves allowing a system to guide you through a process of refinement or auto practice. An example of this would be enrolling in a class to improve your public speaking abilities. You may be guided by a teacher or a peer as you give a speech to a small audience. You may also choose to give a speech in front of large crowds without any guidance. The purpose is to improve your abilities, but you may choose to do this at your own pace. Auto training can also be done through music, graphic design or any other creative mediums.
Why Auto Training?
This is similar to refined and mindful practice, but there are benefits to not creating your own practice. If you are able to engage in auto training, then you can improve your abilities and your enjoyment. You do not have to worry about creating a practice, that is going to lead to flow or boredom. You will be guided through this process. If you are someone, who practices alone or with a few close friends, then engaging in auto training can increase the size of your community, allowing you to practice with others. Auto training is a good idea for those, who have time and energy to spare. If you're short on either one, then auto training may not be for you.
I never would have known about this. l think I've experienced this so many times but I never really knew what it actually meant, how freaky is that. Like sometimes I can also be so unmotivated that it's a problem really.