a few more months to go. Actually you are virtually there
and now you want to throw away four years, just like that?
Bit of a waste, eh?
It's your choice to throw away four years of effort.
I'm scared to death I will flunk.
So it's very important to you that you make it.
Yes, I didn't put in four years for nothing.
What would motivate you to go for it those last few months?
Source:
Source: The Art of Counselling / De Kunst van het Counselen
© Copyright Owner:
Academy for Counselling and Coaching -
The Netherlands - Paul van Schaik
964
4.5 SURFING THE FLOW SPIRAL
Flow is the mental state of operation in which a person in an
activity is fully immersed in a feeling of energized focus, full
involvement, and success in the process of the activity. Proposed
by Mihály Csíkszentmihályi, the positive psychology concept has
been widely referenced across a variety of fields.
According to Csíkszentmihályi, flow is completely focused
motivation. It is a single-minded immersion and represents
perhaps the ultimate in harnessing the emotions in the service of
performing and learning. In flow, the emotions are not just
contained and channeled, but positive, energized, and aligned
with the task at hand. To be caught in the ennui of depression or
the agitation of anxiety is to be barred from flow. The hallmark of
flow is a feeling of spontaneous joy, even rapture, while
performing a task,. although flow is also described (below) as a
deep focus on nothing but the activity – not even oneself or one's
emotions.
Colloquial terms for this or similar mental states include: to be
on the ball, in the moment, present, in the zone, wired in, in the
groove, or owning.
Components of flow
Csíkszentmihályi identifies the following ten factors as
accompanying an experience of flow
1. Clear goals (expectations and rules are discernible and goals
are attainable and align appropriately with one's skill set and
abilities). Moreover, the challenge level and skill level should
both be high.
2. Concentrating, a high degree of concentration on a limited
field of attention (a person engaged in the activity will have
the opportunity to focus and to delve deeply into it).
965
3. A loss of the feeling of self-consciousness, the merging of
action and awareness.
4. Distorted sense of time, one's subjective experience of time is
altered.
5. Direct and immediate feedback (successes and failures in the
course of the activity are apparent, so that behavior can be
adjusted as needed).
6. Balance between ability level and challenge (the activity is
neither too easy nor too difficult).
7. A sense of personal control over the situation or activity.
8. The activity is intrinsically rewarding, so there is an
effortlessness of action.
9. A lack of awareness of bodily needs (to the extent that one
can reach a point of great hunger or fatigue without realizing
it)
10. Absorption into the activity, narrowing of the focus of
awareness down to the activity itself, action awareness
merging.
Not all are needed for flow to be experienced.
Etymology
Flow is so named because during Csíkszentmihályi's 1975
interviews several people described their "flow" experiences
using the metaphor of a water current carrying them along. The
psychological concept of flow as becoming absorbed in an
activity is thus unrelated to the older phrase go with the flow.
966
History/background
The study of the concept of flow came about in the 1960s. Mihaly
Csikszentmihalyi, who is considered to be the founder of flow,
and his fellow researchers began researching flow after
Csikszentmihalyi became fascinated by artists who would
essentially get lost in their work.
Artists, especially painters, got so immersed in their work that
they would disregard their need for food, water and even sleep.
Thus, the origin of research on the theory of flow came about
when Csikszentmihalyi tried to understand this phenomenon
experienced by these artists. Flow research became prevalent in
the 1980s and 1990s, still with Csikszentmihalyi and his
colleagues in Italy at the forefront. Researchers interested in
optimal experiences and emphasizing positive experiences,
especially in places such as schools and the business world, also
began studying the theory of flow in this time period. The theory
of flow was greatly used in the theories of Maslow and Rogers in
their development of the humanistic tradition of psychology.
Flow has been experienced throughout history and across
cultures. The teachings of Buddhism and Taoism speak of a state
of mind known as the "action of inaction" or "doing without
doing" that greatly resembles the idea of flow. Also, Indian texts
on Advaita philosophy such as Ashtavakra Gita and the Yoga of
Knowledge such as Bhagavad-Gita refer to this similar state.
Historical sources hint that Michelangelo may have painted the
ceiling of the Vatican's Sistine Chapel while in a flow state. It is
reported that he painted for days at a time, and he was so
absorbed in his work that he did not stop for food or sleep until
he reached the point of passing out. He would wake up refreshed
and, upon starting to paint again, re-entered a state of complete
absorption.
967
Bruce Lee also spoke of a psychological state similar to flow in
his book the Tao of Jeet Kune Do.
Mechanism of flow
In every given moment, there is a great deal of information made
available to each individual. Psychologists have found that one's
mind can attend to only a certain amount of information at a
time. According to Miller's 1956 study, that number is about 126
bits of information per second. That may seem like a large
number (and a lot of information), but simple daily tasks take
quite a lot of information. Just having a conversation takes about
40 bits of information per second; that's 1/3 of one's capacity.
That is why when one is having a conversation he or she cannot
focus as much of his or her attention on other things.
For the most part (except for basic bodily feelings like hunger
and pain, which are innate), people are able to decide what they
want to focus their attention on. However, when one is in the
flow state, he or she is completely engrossed with the one task at
hand and, without making the conscious decision to do so, loses
awareness of all other things: time, people, distractions, and
even basic bodily needs. This occurs because all of the attention
of the person in the flow state is on the task at hand; there is no
more attention to be allocated.
One cannot force oneself to enter flow. It just happens. A flow
state can be entered while performing any activity, although it is
most likely to occur when one is wholeheartedly performing a
task or activity for intrinsic purposes.
Mental state in terms of challenge level and skill level, according
to Csikszentmihalyi.
968
Conditions for flow
There are three conditions that are necessary to achieve the flow
state:
1. One must be involved in an activity with a clear set of
goals. This adds direction and structure to the task.
2. One must have a good balance between the perceived
challenges of the task at hand and his or her own
perceived skills. One must have confidence that he or
she is capable to do the task at hand.
3. The task at hand must have clear and immediate
feedback. This helps the person negotiate any changing
demands and allows him or her to adjust his or her
performance to maintain the flow state.
969
In 1997, Csíkszentmihályi published the graph to the right. This
graph depicts the relationship between the perceived challenges
of a task and one's perceived skills. This graph illustrates one
further aspect of flow: it can only occur when the activity at hand
is a higher-than-average challenge (above the center point) and
requires above-average skills (to the right of the center point).
The center of this graph (where the sectors meet) represents
one's average levels of challenge and skill. The further from the
center an experience is, the greater the intensity of that state of
being (whether it is flow or anxiety or boredom or relaxation).
The autotelic personality
Csíkszentmihályi hypothesized that people with several very
specific personality traits may be better able to achieve flow
more often than the average person. These personality traits
include curiosity, persistence, low self-centeredness, and a high
rate of performing activities for intrinsic reasons only. People
with most of these personality traits are said to have an autotelic
personality.
It has not yet been documented whether people with an autotelic
personality are truly more likely to achieve a flow state. One
researcher (Abuhamdeh, 2000) did find that people with an
autotelic personality have a greater preference for "high-action-
opportunity, high-skills situations that stimulate them and
encourage growth" than those without an autotelic personality.
It is in such high-challenge, high-skills situations that people are
most likely to enter the flow state.
Group flow
Csíkszentmihályi suggests several ways a group can work
together so that each individual member achieves flow. The
characteristics of such a group include:
970
Creative spatial arrangements: Chairs, pin walls, charts,
but no tables; thus work primarily standing and moving
Playground design: Charts for information inputs, flow
graphs, project summary, craziness (here also craziness
has a place), safe place (here all may say what is
otherwise only thought), result wall, open topics
Parallel, organized working
Target group focus
Advancement of existing one (prototyping)
Increase in efficiency through visualization
Using differences among participants as an opportunity,
rather than an obstacle
Applications
Applications suggested by Csíkszentmihályi versus other
practitioners
Only Csíkszentmihályi seems to have published suggestions for
extrinsic applications of the flow concept, such as design
methods for playgrounds to elicit the flow experience. Other
practitioners of Csíkszentmihályi's flow concept focus on
intrinsic applications, such as spirituality, performance
improvement,
or
self-help.
Reinterpretations
of
Csíkszentmihályi's flow process exist to improve performance in
areas as diverse as business, piano improvisation, sport
psychology, computer programming, and standup comedy.
Education
In education, there is the concept of overlearning, which seems
to be an important factor in this technique, in that
Csíkszentmihályi states that overlearning enables the mind to
concentrate on visualizing the desired performance as a singular,
integrated action instead of a set of actions. Challenging
assignments that (slightly) stretch one's skills lead to flow.
971
Around 2000, it came to the attention of Csíkszentmihályi that
the principles and practices of the Montessori Method of
education seemed to purposefully set up continuous flow
opportunities and experiences for students. Csíkszentmihályi
and psychologist Kevin Rathunde embarked on a multi-year
study of student experiences in Montessori settings and
traditional educational settings. The research supported
observations that students achieved flow experiences more
frequently in Montessori settings.
Music
Musicians, especially improvisational soloists may experience a
similar state of mind while playing their instrument. Research
has shown that performers in a flow state have a heightened
quality of performance as opposed to when they are not in a flow
state. In a study performed with professional classical pianists
who played piano pieces several times to induce a flow state, a
significant relationship was found between the flow state of the
pianist and the pianist’s heart rate, blood pressure, and major
facial muscles. As the pianist entered the flow state, heart rate
and blood pressure decreased and the major facial muscles
relaxed. This study further emphasized that flow is a state of
effortless attention. In spite of the effortless attention and overall
relaxation of the body, the performance of the pianist during the
flow state improved.
Groups of drummers experience a state of flow when they sense
a collective energy that drives the beat, something they refer to
as getting into the groove. Bass guitarists often describe a state
of flow when properly playing between the percussion and
melody as being in the pocket.
972
Sports
Flow may occur in challenging sports such as Eventing.
The concept of being in the zone during an athletic performance
fits within Csíkszentmihályi's description of the flow experience,
and theories and applications of being in the zone and its
relationship with athletic competitive advantage are topics
studied in the field of sport psychology.
Timothy Gallwey’s influential works on the "inner game" of
sports such as golf and tennis described the mental coaching and
attitudes required to "get in the zone" and fully internalize
mastery of the sport.
Roy Palmer suggests that "being in the zone" may also influence
movement patterns as better integration of the conscious and
subconscious reflex functions improves coordination. Many
athletes describe the effortless nature of their performance while
achieving personal bests – see references.
The Formula One driver Ayrton Senna, who during qualifying for
the 1988 Monaco Grand Prix explained: "I was already on pole,
[...] and I just kept going. Suddenly I was nearly two seconds
faster than anybody else, including my team mate with the same
car. And suddenly I realised that I was no longer driving the car
consciously. I was driving it by a kind of instinct, only I was in a
different dimension. It was like I was in a tunnel."
When challenges and skills are simultaneously above average, a
broadly positive experience emerges. Also vital to the flow state
is a sense of control, which nevertheless seems simultaneously
effortless and masterful. Control and concentration manifest
with a transcendence of normal awareness; one aspect of this
transcendence is the loss of self-consciousness.
973
Religion and spirituality
Csíkszentmihályi may have been the first to describe this concept
in Western psychology, but as he himself readily acknowledges
he was most certainly not the first to quantify the concept of flow
or develop applications based on the concept.
For millennia, practitioners of Eastern religions such as
Hinduism, Buddhism and Taoism have honed the discipline of
overcoming the duality of self and object as a central feature of
spiritual development. Eastern spiritual practitioners have
developed a very thorough and holistic set of theories around
overcoming duality of self and object, tested and refined through
spiritual practice instead of the systematic rigor and controls of
modern science.
The phrase being at one with things is a metaphor of
Csíkszentmihályi's flow concept. Practitioners of the varied
schools of Zen Buddhism apply concepts similar to flow to aid
their mastery of art forms, including, in the case of Japanese Zen
Buddhism, Aikido, Cheng Hsin, Judo, Honkyoku, Kendo and
Ikebana. In yogic traditions such as Raja Yoga reference is made
to a state of flow in the practice of Samyama, a psychological
absorption in the object of meditation. Theravada Buddhism
refers to "access concentration," which is a state of flow achieved
through meditation and used to further strengthen
concentration into jhana, and/or to develop insight.
In Islam the first mental state that precedes human action is
known as al-khatir. In this state an image or thought is born in
the mind. When in this mental state and contemplating upon an
ayat or an imprint of God, one may experience a profound state
of Oneness or flow whereby the phenomena of nature, the
macrocosmic world and the souls of people are understood as a
sign of God. Also, the teaching in the Qu'ran of different nations
of people existing so that they may come to know each other is
974
an example of Oneness. All members of society and the world are
considered to be in flow of Oneness, one family, one body.
GamingThis is especially true since the primary goal of games is
to create entertainment through intrinsic motivation. The use of
flow in games helps foster an enjoyable experience which
increases motivation and draws players to continue playing.
Game designers, in particular, benefit from integration of flow
principles into game design. Games facilitate flow as either an
individual or group activity.
Flow in games has been linked to the Laws of Learning as part of
the explanation for why learning games (the use of games to
introduce material, improve understanding, or increase
retention) can show such incredible results. In particular, flow is
intrinsically motivating, which is part of the Law of Readiness.
The condition of feedback, required for flow, is associated with
the feedback aspects of the Law of Exercise. The positive
emotions associated with flow are associated with the Law of
Effect. The intense experiences of being in a state of flow are
directly associated with the Law of Intensity.
Using the Web
Researchers suggest that using the internet can cause a flow
state for users. If individuals are going through a flow state,
which is a pleasurable experience, web users eventually improve
their subjective well-being through accumulated ephemeral
moments. Many web users report certain descriptions of flow
when using the web, for example, absorbed interest, a feeling of
discovery, immersed pleasure, and time going very fast.
Flow Activities on the Web
Web users state that activities in the web atmosphere lead to a
flow state. There are four common activities that promote flow,
searching, surfing, reading and writing, and chatting.
975
Searching
The first and the most common activity to reach the flow state on
the web is searching on the web. An example of searching is
solving a problem such as the following responses from
participants in a study of web flow:
"I was very involved in several projects and used the net
resources to look up items to supplement/back-up/provide
information on those projects."
"Doing research into emotional intelligence theory ± following
links and leads to more information."
"Trying to find some scientific references for my research."
"Anytime I get involved in a new research project on the Web, I
get so excited and into it, I can have someone talking to me right
next to my desk . . . and I won't even hear them talking."
Surfing or Navigating
The second activity to reach flow state on the web is surfing or
navigating. An example of surfing or navigating is going through
hyperlinks such as the following responses from participants in a
study of web flow:
"Going from site to site, following links that were related."
"Doing some Web searches for information on a hobby of mine."
"I was going to a Web site which had a new song by my favorite
punk band. I was surprised and enmeshed in it."
"Looking for information on a specific book, and got off on some
links that were interesting and related [sort of] to what I started
out looking for."
976
Reading and Writing
The third activity to reach flow state on the web are reading and
writing. Reading consists of reading incoming emails, news,
articles, etc. on web pages. In addition, writing consists of
composing letters, articles, speeches, etc. on web pages. The
activity of reading e-mail and articles is one of the routes to
experience flow because the text usually contains some new or
relatively unfamiliar aspects, providing the challenges to sustain
flow, which in turn usually caused growth and perceived benefits
from increased knowledge and/or personal development.
Furthermore, writing articles, speeches, or emails corresponds
with the flow model due to the fact that an individual is
arranging his or her thoughts positively.
Chatting online
The fourth activity to reach flow state on the web is chatting
online. An example of chatting online is communicating with
other individuals such as the following responses from
participants in a study of web flow:
"I was simply engaged in a running series of conversations with
friends . . ."
"Chatroom outside normal business hours."
"Involved in a nine-way chat session with some friends I've made
on the alt.fan.sailor-moon newsgroup."
Other Activities
There are many other activities people can partake in while
using the web. Some individuals statethat they achieve flow by
coding a program, hacking into a small business, building their
own web page, watching a movie preview, troubleshooting
computer problems, and many more.
977
Components/Symptoms of flow on the Web
Merging of action and awareness
When an individual is in flow, they are concentrating and
narrowing down their activity. Therefore, an individual’s inner
experience may reveal the phenomenon of merging action and
<