You and Your Brain 7: Flow State
Summer is fluid. We go with the flow of longer days and later bedtimes. We live by the tides. Or wander in the sunshine. We lose track of time. If this expansiveness gives way to feeling more focused or at ease, you may have tapped into a state of mind called Flow State.
The psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi first recognized and named Flow State as a highly focused mental state conducive to productivity.
If you can familiarize yourself (and your students) with this feeling of “Being in the Zone” and even train yourself to tap into it during a project or before a test, it could transform education.
Use the lazy days of summer to get in the zone with Flow State. Try it with activities you know you love, then imagine being able to get into it at will next school year!
Mindfulness Activity of the Week
8 Ways to Create Flow State
Answer these questions to helo you tap into Flow State:
- Complete Concentration – What helps you remain completely focused?
- Crystal Clear Goals – Instant feedback comes as a reward every step of the way as you get closer to your goals. Can you name some goals
- Feeling of Timelessness – Experiencing an altered sense of time, speeding up or slowing down, is a marker that your mind has entered a state of Flow. When does this happen to you
- The Experience is Immediately Satisfying—Whether the goal is reached or not, engaging in the activity itself is fulfilling. Flow State has a very high I-ROI (Immediate Return on Investment). What activities are extremely rewarding for you?
- Effortlessness and Ease—Soften into the grace of what comes naturally to you. What activities are easy for you that you don’t have to muscle through or force?
- Balance Between Challenge and Skills—Neither boredom nor anxiety exists within the Flow State. Can you find the sweet spot between knowing just enough to be successful without getting frustrated or bored?
- Actions and Awareness are Merged—Have you ever felt completely confident in your actions while doing something you love? Or have you ever felt “one with nature?”
- A Feeling of Control Over the Task—Mastery and wisdom come through experience and practice. Flow State is your reward. When have you felt it?
Movement Activity of the Week
Warrior Two – Chair Practice
Practice aligning your mind and your body.
