if i asked you , what are the things that could bring you a true sense of Happiness
what's the first thing that comes to your mind ? A lot of you might say
well , I'll be happy when i'm rich , I'll be happy after watching this new movie
Or an example could be a friend of mine .when a New iPhone or a computer comes out
he'd be the first one to buy it , seriously like he would buy every single phone that comes out
i couldn't understand why so I asked him: why did you buy that phone the old one works fine right ?
he would say something like : well it has these new Apps on
it's expensive , it feels good ! it feels good to buy something new !
And i'm like : good luck with that but none of it is going to fill that void inside your heart
the joy you feel from having more stuff is an unsustained happiness based on external stimulus
Mihay Csikszentmihalyi discovered that the only way
you could experience true happiness is by altering your state of consciousness
how can we alter our state of consciousness then? Csikszentmihalyi says that the only way to achieve that
is by entering a state of optimal experience called FLOW.
because our default state of mind is characterized by complete desorder
self-doubt self-consciousness fear and jealousy , Flow seems to bring order
in consciousness , making all of that self critique and mental chatter disappear.
when it's ON(flow) a person can feel true ecstasy and forget about all
the unpleasant aspects of life . in flow time seems to dilate(distort) fascinating isn't it ?
you've probably experienced this yourself when you're working on a project . you start working
and BAM! six hours By Without Even Noticing. Steven kotler add's on to that(mihaly's research)
saying that , in flow , parts of our Prefrontal cortex SHUTDOWN
from that we experience heightened attention , loss of self , our information processing speeds up
in other words flow shortens our path to mastery , enabling you to cultivate
Any Skill , Much faster :)
now let's look at some triggers Csikszentmihalyi cited in his book(flow)
to help you ease your way into the flow channel.
taking any kind of social risk or challenge such as exposing yourself image to rejection , is the easiest way
to get into the zone . now you don't want that risk to be too high otherwise you'll freak out and quit .
it must be about 4% higher than your skill levels yes just 4% and
you'll find yourself in flow . this analogy of social risks is also
applicable to any kind of creative work whether you're into writing , playing music or Boxing.
The main idea is to increase the challenge every time you get better
Don't repeat the same boring activities every day. this is how you maintain
A life of continuous flow and constant ecstasy . in the rise of superman
Steven Kotler shows us how we can HACK into a flow state by using external triggers
the first external trigger is novelty and unpredictability :
navigating into unknown experiences heightens our attention so on a predictability trigger
could be a walk in the woods , exploring a cave , traveling to another country
Or even talking to a stranger. the second external trigger is deep embodiment :
it requires overwhelming the brain with action until it's thinking part
shuts down from over processing information an example for deep embodiments could be :
an intensive workout session , performing complicated martial art Moves
or any kind of physical activity that requires focusing attention and exerting lots of physical effort
now you're probably wondering why do I have to take risks ?
why do I have to challenge myself to get into the zone ?
well here's why : Steven goes deep in his research on "flow hacking"
by revealing the science of neuroelectricity and neurochemistry behind flow
with his research you are now able to know what happens exactly
inside the brain and the body when you're in the zone and why you need these
challenges to get into the flow . he says that even though flow is always a
positive experience, it starts with an unpleasant phase called ''struggle''
You start the struggle phase by overwhelming the Brain with information as we said before
for an athlete it could be a performance that demands lot's of
physical training , for a writer it could be trying out new vocabulary
the struggle phase brings up frustration and the release of stress hormones such as
cortisol and adrenaline .. emotionally we feel adrenaline as .. fear .
it's the fight-or-flight response either you accept the struggle which equals flow on the long run(in the future)
or you resist the obstacle by quitting. adrenaline primes the body for
a flow state , so the next time you feel that Fear rising up in your stomach
that's a good sign .. it's a signal that a flow state is coming
the second phase is release it's triggered the moment you accept the struggle
and stop resisting it , in release the stress chemicals are replaced with
relaxation chemicals like dopamine and endorphins.. underneath release comes flow
it sneaks up on you..while you're struggling with your task or risk .
in flow , performance goes through the roof you'll experience heightened attention
as we said , and increased mental and physical abilities , now there's something else
You need to know before you move on to our final stage. the DURATION of a flow state
varies from task to task :for example a flow state triggered by a twenty-minute meditation
session won't last as long as a flow experience that's triggered by skydiving
exercising or hiking same goes for a intensity , Our Fourth Stage is recovery
from all these chemicals produced in the body and all that fast processing of information
flow leaves us in a state of total exhaustion ; recovery is an
unpleasant phase as a RE-Activision process of several brain parts
it's the transition from Superman to normal reality :)
Csikszentmihalyi says that Any lapse in concentration will ERASE flow
If that happens you have to repeat the cycle again so keep that in mind
he says that by stretching skills, by reaching toward higher challenges , such person
becomes increasingly extraordinary individuals