Shownotes

• Flow is a state of being. We modulate an activity until we get into a flow state.
• Flow for most of us is easier to achieve than we realize.
• Interstitial journaling (as explained in Episode 6) will help you to catch your patterns and then make adjustments before you get into a task.
• Again, I’m very thankful to Tony Stubblebine from Coach.me who introduced me to how to modulate for flow.

Elements of a Flow Experience

1. We’re confronting a task we have a chance of actually completing
2. There’s a concentration and focus on what we’re doing
3. The task has clear goals
4. The task provides immediate feedback
5. There’s a sense of involvement where awareness of everyday worries drops away
6. There’s a sense of control or even mastery
7. Self-consciousness disappears (yet a stronger positive sense of self emerges after the task)
8. The sense of time is altered; hours seem to pass by in minutes, or seconds feel stretched out into minutes or hours.

Levers for Flow

• Clear goal. Set a goal for yourself. The goal could be pragmatic or it could simply be created for the purpose of turning your activity into a goal.
• Challenge. It should be challenging enough to be engaging, but not so challenging as to be frustrating.
• Skill. If you can’t bring the challenge level down, then you’re going to have to bring your skill level up.

Emotional States When Working

• There are 8 emotional states, that we can be in: Apathy, Boredom, Relaxation, Control, Flow, Arousal, Worry, Anxiety

If the challenge is lower than your skill level, you might feel Apathy, Boredom or Relaxation.
-> then modulate the goal and the challenge. Make the goal bigger, or make a challenge out of a mundane task.

If the challenge is just about right for your skill level you’ll feel Control, Flow or Arousal.
-> You found the right level of challenge for your skill level, keep going.

When the challenge is bigger than the skill level you might feel Anxiety or Worry.
-> One of the things you need to be in flow is a clear goal that you know you can accomplish.
A lot of times, a hard activity prevents flow because the goal you have in mind is too far outside of your comfort zone.
So if you’re anxious and frustrated, ask yourself: Can I change the goal, can I pick an earlier milestone?

• Read more about how to create group flow: https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/what_mel_brooks_can_teach_us_about_group_flow

Listen to the podcast at anchor.fm/gabrielp (you can also leave a voice message there, which is supercool.)