Grow with the Flow
Whatever industry you work in, instead of focusing too heavily on competition and evaluation, why not foster peaceful, invigorating places to work?
When Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi interviewed exceptionally creative people, they often described their experiences of creative absorption with the metaphor of water.
It was as if a river was carrying their minds in the flow of its current. So, Csikszentmihalyi coined that optimal experience of creativity “flow.”
When you learn any new skill—like a Mozart sonata on the piano, or a sequence of dance steps—Csikszentmihalyi reminds us that it takes cognitive effort. The steep learning curve often feels frustrating.
But with dedicated practice, the notes or the steps often begin to “flow.” The movements of your hands arise naturally. A sense of a self, one that has been forcefully making decision after decision, disappears.
To Csikszentmihalyi, that experience of flow, of effortless absorption, happens when an activity is challenging enough to engage your full attention, but not so challenging that you feel you need to acquire more skills to execute it.
Once you’ve attained a certain level of mastery in a discipline (whether it’s basketball, business or ballet), entering and maintaining creative flow becomes less about imposing your will power and more about leaning in and letting go.
The ancient Greek figure of the muse speaks to that experience. When a muse inspires you (however metaphorically), it’s as if she’s carrying you along her current. Rather than will the experience, you welcome it.
Are there any activities that help you to experience flow? Take note of those. Savour them.
Sometimes I feel effortless joy and relaxed concentration when I am writing. It can take discipline to start, but once I’m in “the zone,” I find it hard to stop.
I lose track of time and forget my worries, my thirst and my physical hunger. It’s only when something interrupts me that I notice that I am dehydrated and haven’t eaten. On mornings that I know I can spend the day writing, I jump out of bed.
Falling into the flow of words, I feel in control. But it is neither my ego nor my willpower that keeps me there.
Some situations impede that effortless flow. If I am experiencing stress around a deadline, writing loses its joy. If I anticipate harsh criticism, I feel paralyzed. If I get lost in rumination, it cripples me. When I focus on achieving only the end result, the ability to stay mindfully attentive to the present moment weakens.
“Sometimes I feel effortless joy and relaxed concentration when I am writing. It can take discipline to start, but once I’m in “the zone,” I find it hard to stop.”"
When Paul Zollo interviewed Bob Dylan in 1991, he asked Dylan what the best environment is for creative work. Dylan said: “People need peaceful, invigorating environments. Stimulating environments.”
You may not work for a company of poets, musicians and artists, (at least not as far as you know), but the spirit of creativity of any innovative endeavour is the same. The creative process crosses disciplines.
Whatever industry you work in, instead of focusing too heavily on competition and evaluation, why not foster peaceful, invigorating places to work?
“People need peaceful, invigorating environments. Stimulating environments.”
Rather than force people to extend undue effort on tasks they don’t enjoy, invite them to work in their optimal state more often. Encourage them to spend 20 percent of the day on what they do best, on things they love, on activities that invite flow, presence, purpose and joy.
Keep a record of your own experiences of flow. Show interest when others share theirs. Challenge your employees and colleagues to find flow in places they might not normally think to look.
“Keep a record of your own experiences of flow. Show interest when others share theirs. Challenge your employees and colleagues to find flow in places they might not normally think to look.”
As a student, I worked as a waitress to support my studies. Sometimes I felt flow when I was serving coffee, weaving between tables and folding serviettes. I never imagined that I would become a master waitress, but that never inhibited me from experiencing effortless joy and concentration in the act of waiting tables.
If someone finds an activity too challenging at your workplace, give that person an opportunity to develop additional skills. Invite her to return to the activity days, weeks or months later. With more experience and training, she’ll learn to approach the task adeptly and with greater confidence.
By giving her the opportunity to learn, it increases the chance that she’ll experience states of flow. And since the experience of flow is joyful and motivating, and it’s inevitable that you, your business and your colleagues will grow with the flow!