Five Keys To Finding Flow

In our last article, we talked about the four stages of flow. This highly productive state is closely tied with motivation. The more we achieve flow state, the more motivated we become to fall into flow regularly.

If we’re new to finding the flow state, this attempt to unlock the flow cycle on a regular basis can be an avenue of frustration. Sometimes we aren’t sure how we reached flow state the first time. Or maybe we’re so determined to get there, we end up not resting enough, leading to burn out.

But practice is essential in ensuring we’re able to get into flow state as often as possible, particularly when we are motivated and working to reach a productive goal. In order to set ourselves up for success, here are five things to keep in mind as we go into every flow cycle.

Eliminate Distraction

We live in an age of distraction. We’re connected to the world in a way that gives us unlimited information. It can make work exciting and full of possibility. But it also comes with a plethora of distractions with endless dings, pings, and rings assailing us throughout our work day. Outside of work related interruptions, we also have endless feeds of social media and seemingly infinite digital content at our fingertips.

Whenever we allow a distraction to hijack our focus, it takes up to twenty minutes to redirect our focus.It may feel like it takes two minutes to answer an email, but really, it’s a lot more.

Distractions may seem minimal or inconsequential in stage one, but it’s actually the opposite. We need to focus on whatever it is we’re learning, and the levels of concentration and effort can’t be reached if we’re distracted. This becomes even more vital when we have a specific amount of time in which we’re able to work. Every two minute email or quick glance at social media reduces our availability.

It may not be realistic to turn off the outside world entirely, but as we practice falling into flow, we need to become disciplined in reducing distractions. Turn off notifications on our laptops and phones. Let people know you’ll be unavailable for a set period of time. The more disciplined we get in managing distractions while practicing flow state, the more productive we’ll end up being overall.

Schedule Enough Time

Individual reports on how long it takes to reach flow state and stay in it vary. But it’s safe to assume that while we’re new at finding our flow, we’re going to need time.

In the beginning, we won’t know how much time we’ll need for each stage. It’s believed that we can achieve flow state in as little as fifteen minutes and that we won’t reach the peak state of flow for another forty-five minutes. So scheduling thirty minutes is probably not realistic or result in getting much done. Especially in our early efforts of getting into flow.

Ideally, we want to have two hours of uninterrupted time scheduled. And within that time, we want to be able to track each stage in a subtle way. Maybe we use the timer on our phone. Or make a note of the time for each stage in the margin of a notepad. We don’t necessarily want to be aware of the time, but we do want to be able to understand how our individual flow stages unfold.

Once we are able to get into a state of flow regularly, we’ll know how much time the overall process takes. It will help eliminate distractions and stress, because we can schedule designated flow times throughout our day and our week, maximizing our productivity.

Harness Passion

Part of finding flow is being so immersed in the task, we become absorbed in it entirely. And that is difficult to do if we are annoyed or unmotivated by the task we’re trying to do.

That’s not to say we can only achieve flow with things we’re passionate about. That would make using flow as a means of steady productivity difficult. But when we’re in the beginning stages of trying to unlock flow on a regular basis, focus is key. And we’re far more likely to harness that focus and capture the state of flow with activities we can be fully absorbed by. Once we’re able to tap into the flow state doing things we love, we can then learn how to harness that power into more mundane tasks.

The trick to harnessing power is being able to find elements of things we love in everything we do. Maybe finishing a project for work isn’t the assignment of our dreams, but hopefully we can find facets in that project that captures our interest and attention. Once we’ve trained our brain to highlight the elements we enjoy, we can use that to hone our focus and achieve flow for a wide variety of tasks.

Set Clear Goals

Yes, the goal is to reach a state of flow. But the state of flow is a large goal, and in order to reach it, we need a set of specific small goals to help get us there.

Take writing as an example. When writing a novel, there are multiple steps involved. The writer must know the plot, the characters, the twists and turns. But sitting down to the blank page can lead to starts and stops, which will likely keep them from achieving flow. However, if they instead take the time to outline the plot, build the characters, and preplan the plot twists, they’ll sit down knowing exactly what that writing session entails. It will be easier for them to write in a state of flow because the answers and details are available to them, allowing their creativity to take over.

We can apply this approach to any project or task. By taking the time to lay out specific goals for each flow session, we are far more likely to let our creative brain take over while working. And the more we can utilize these planned, specific, small goals, the faster we can fall into flow state.

Add A Little Challenge

Trying to attain a state of flow with tasks we don’t find challenging is going to be next to impossible. The first problem is focus. Whenever we engage in activities that we know like the back of our hand, our brain has the tendency to wander. And this lack of focus will prevent us from achieving flow.

The same problem occurs when we add too much challenge. Our brain will be engaged and we’ll be focused, but the frustration we’re likely to repetitively hit will also keep us from reaching flow.

What we want is to find a way to add the right amount of challenge to our project. If we’re studying, for example, maybe we mix the chapters up or go through the flash cards at random. We don’t want our brain to get comfortable and feel like it knows what to expect. By taking a different approach, adding new information, or changing our perspective, we can stay focused and reach our ideal flow state.

Conclusion

The flow state is one of the most productive and rewarding experiences. It’s when we solve problems, produce quality results, and move forward with specific tasks in our lives. However, learning how to achieve this state takes time and practice. By understanding the key elements that can help us harness our focus, we will fine tune our ability to achieve flow state every time we try, unlocking our limitless potential.