Imagine you are running a race. Your attention is focused on the movements of your body, the strength of your muscles, the power of your lungs and the ground beneath your feet. You are living in the present moment, completely absorbed in what you are doing. Time seems to pass differently. You are tired, but you barely notice it. This is an example of the state of flow.
However, it is not just a privilege of athletes. Michelangelo Buonarroti also experienced flow when he was painting the Sistine Chapel. And you have surely experienced it at some point too. Some people get into flow easily and often, while others find it harder. How does this state actually arise, and can you use it to your advantage?
Table of contents
What is flow?
Flow is a mental state in which we are fully immersed in a mental or physical activity. These are moments of complete concentration when we lose track of time and even our physiological needs. Every action, movement and thought follows the previous one automatically. Our whole being is engaged and we use our abilities to the full.
We can experience flow during activities that we enjoy and are fairly skilled at. In a state of flow, we have clear goals that are challenging but still achievable for us. We feel enthusiasm, calm and a sense of personal control over the situation and its outcome. During flow, we also feel that we are getting immediate feedback, which motivates us and drives us forward.
The concept of flow was named and defined by the psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, who wanted to understand the phenomenon of famous artists becoming fully immersed in their work. Michelangelo Buonarroti, for example, is said to have painted for several days at a stretch and to have been so absorbed in his work that he did not even notice the need for food or sleep, until he fainted from exhaustion. When he woke up, he felt completely refreshed and once again threw himself into his work with great dedication. Csikszentmihalyi carried out extensive research into the state of flow mainly in the 1980s and 1990s, together with his colleagues in Italy.
What happens in the brain during flow?
What makes flow unique is that the brain releases 5 chemicals at once. These are serotonin, norepinephrine, dopamine, anandamide and endorphins. These substances help boost performance and, at the same time, create a cocktail of very pleasant feelings. As a result, we feel mentally and physically stronger and respond with the greatest precision and commitment.
According to research, in a state of flow our productivity increases by up to 500% and our creativity and problem-solving ability by up to 430%. So although it might seem that our brain is working at full speed in these moments, the opposite is true. During flow, part of the brain switches off. Specifically, it is the prefrontal cortex, the seat of our inner critic, which normally reminds us of time, planning and, above all, our sense of self. When the inner critic switches off, our ego loses all importance and suddenly everything seems easy because, simply put, we stop getting in our own way. We therefore reach states similar to those that people achieve through meditation.
Main benefits of flow
- greater engagement in the task at hand
- better performance and artistic creativity
- living in the present moment, here and now
- less stress, worry and self-doubt
- better emotional regulation and growing emotional complexity
- enjoyment and fulfilment from what we do
- a sense of happiness, satisfaction and self-fulfilment
- greater intrinsic motivation, meaning we do things for internal rewards
How to get into a state of flow and stay there
You cannot force a state of flow, but you can at least create ideal conditions for it. Flow occurs when we engage in an activity that sits between the edge of boredom and anxiety. This means the task must not be so difficult that we feel anxious, but it also must not be so easy that we start to get bored. This is very important. You can also encourage this desired state with the following tips:
- Choose something you enjoy
If you are doing something you really dislike, flow will probably elude you. So work on something you enjoy, are interested in and that makes you happy. This means that if you want to enter flow easily, you need to truly believe in what you are doing, be passionate about it and see meaning in it.
- Set clear goals
In his book, Csikszentmihalyi explains that flow is most likely to occur when a person faces a task that has clear goals requiring specific responses. One example is a game of chess, where the player has very specific goals and responses throughout the match, which allows their attention to stay fully focused on the game the whole time.
- Remove distractions
If there are several things in your surroundings competing for your attention, it may be harder to experience flow. So try to limit the distractions around you so that you can fully concentrate on the task at hand.
- Add an element of challenge
A state of flow occurs when a person’s skills are fully engaged in overcoming a challenge that is at the limit of what they can manage. If the challenges start to seem too small, we can get back into flow by raising them. If the challenges are too big, we can return to flow by learning new skills. It is also well known that the greater the risk, the more we focus on the task. A typical example is deadlines, when students manage to write a large part of their thesis in a single week.
💡Tip: Finally, it is worth adding that you can stimulate your body to create better conditions for getting into a state of flow. How? It is individual and different things work for different people. We can recommend plenty of exercise, walks, a cold shower or natural stimulants such as this one.
When do we most often experience flow?
Many everyday activities can bring on the pleasant feelings of flow. However, we are very unlikely to reach this state during activities such as watching television, because low skill is matched by low challenge, which usually leads to apathy instead.
Areas where we easily experience flow:
- creative activities : flow is perhaps most often associated with creativity. For example, a writer may feel that the words flow easily and quickly. Musicians, especially improvising soloists, can also experience flow while playing their instrument. Other examples include painting and drawing, as well as working on a project where we use our creativity to solve problems.
- expanding knowledge and skills : if we stretch our knowledge slightly beyond our current level of education, we may experience flow. This is possible because in these cases we already have some knowledge to build on, so the challenge is clear and achievable for us.
- sport and physical activity: a sporting task that is just within the limits of our abilities can also bring on flow. Athletes call this state “being in the zone”. Flow in sport can also have a positive effect on our movement patterns, because better integration of conscious and subconscious reflex functions improves coordination. Many top athletes describe how effortless their performance feels when they achieve personal bests. Flow can come during activities such as skiing, tennis, football, dancing, running and so on.
- gambling and computer games: the downside of flow is that the pleasant feelings it creates can contribute to addiction. For example, bridge or poker have all the conditions needed to reach a state of flow, as they are challenging and require a certain level of skill. It is therefore important to be aware of whether flow is taking more from us than it gives.
A state of flow has the potential to make our lives more intense, more meaningful and more enjoyable. It greatly boosts our performance and creativity and lies behind many extraordinary sporting achievements and works of art. But every coin has two sides, and we can become addicted to the feelings of flow. The question about flow is therefore not only how we can achieve it, but also how we can manage it: using it to improve our lives while still being able to let it go when necessary.
💡 Tip: Also read our article on mindfulness or on how to recognise intuition.
