How to Reach The Flow State of Mind

Here's What You'll Discover

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When you listen to a classical music piece for the first time, sometimes you can almost guess what comes next in terms of melody or instrumental changes.

You hear the musicians flowing to the music, and your mind starts to flow along with them as a listener.

This mental synchronicity will likely make you smile on the inside, and it is an example of what you can achieve when you enter a flow state of mind.

"Be the flow."
Jay-Z Tweet

Not long ago, a friend who works for a renowned advertising agency told me about the process she follows when developing marketing campaigns for new clients.

Creativity is something that all advertising clients demand from their agencies, and this is best achieved with a flow state of mind.

I listened closely to my friend and later asked numerous questions that she patiently answered; from this interaction, I was able to develop a method to help me reach a state of flow, and it has worked wonders.

What is the Flow State of Mind

Perhaps you know it as “being in the zone,” a phrase that is often used by professional sports analysts. Think about Steph Curry of the Golden State Warriors draining one three-point shot after another, or Alex Morgan of the United States Women’s National Team dribbling past defenders to score an amazing goal. In musical performance, the flow is known as “being deep in the pocket,” meaning that you are so in tune with performance that every sound is glorious.

Focus, involvement, enjoyment, and rational satisfaction are at the heart of the flow state; in the field of psychology, it has been formally recognized since the mid-1970s, but it has been part of philosophical thought and religious dogma for many centuries. When you find yourself in the flow state, the way things happen will seem different than everyday life; time unfolds at a rate that feels highly efficient, and you get an overall sense of accomplishment that is extremely beneficial for your psyche.

The reason we refer to the flow state of mind as such is because of early research into the topic. Human nature allows us to see when someone is in a flow state of mind; think about a comedian interacting with the audience and making everyone laugh with clever and hilarious jokes that do not stop flowing. When researchers interviewed people who were clearly in the zone, many of them used used water currents as a way to describe their experience.

How Does The Flow State of Mind Feel Like?

As previously mentioned, the flow state is an extremely positive experience. For authors, it is the complete opposite of writer’s block, meaning that creative juices start flowing and creativity runs at an optimal pace. Since just about everyone who gets into a flow state of mind will reap rewards of some kind, we can easily say that it feels great with just one exception that we will discuss later.

The flow state is more than just feeling good, it is always about feeling “right.” It does not matter if you get into the flow state because of your natural talents or thanks to skills you have learned and sharpened over the years; being in the zone will always feel right. Legendary American drummer Bernard Purdie will be the first to tell you that he was born in the pocket, meaning that he was always gifted, but following a groove always felt right for him.

There is a good chance that you have gotten into the flow state more than once in your life. Think about a time when you felt challenged by an upcoming biology exam that you ended up acing; you may not have been in the flow state when studying for the test, but things changed once you started going through the questions. That satisfying moment when things click and you realize you know the answers is the beginning of the flow; the subsequent confidence as you complete the test is the product of being in the zone.

We could make a very long list of the many benefits that the flow can bring about, but we are going to boil them down to:

* Productivity
* Creativity
* Efficiency
* Satisfaction

The latter benefit is the most important because it connects with your psyche and it can also prolong the flow. Think about a machine operator at a corrugated cardboard factory; she can be productive, creative, and efficient, but if she derives zero satisfaction from her work experience, she may not be able to keep up her productivity for long.

How to Get Into the Zone

How Do You Go a Flow State?

1. Find a challenge

2. Get Focused

3. Find Your Peak Time

4. No Distractions

If you are talented, skilled, and enjoy a specific activity, achieving the flow state of mind will happen almost automatically. You may not even be able to explain it.

In 1992, during the NBA Finals between the Chicago Bulls and the Portland Trailblazers, the legendary Michael Jordan was so deep in the zone that he scored 35 points in the first half, pretty much ensuring a victory for his team. Of all the shots he scored, 18 came from behind the three-point line, which was not the most powerful weapon in his scoring arsenal. After his sixth three-pointer, Jordan shrugged and smiled as he jogged down the court while the fans were going wild.

Post-game interviews showed Jordan explaining that he surprised himself with the barrage of three-point shots. He said it felt as a wave that he just had to ride. This is an example of the flow state of mind coming on naturally and as a result of talent plus skill. When Jordan was in his prime, he used to spend more hours per day at the gym and on the practice court than all his teammates; to a great extent, this explains why he was always in the zone.

Reaching a state of flow is a matter of mindfulness. You will need to be analytical and rational, but not overly so. There must be a task at hand, and you also need to have clear and reasonable goals that you can respond to. I am going to start describing my personal method, which I learned from an advertising professional, of getting into the zone. I apply this method for both researching and writing, which means that you can certainly adopt it for studying and other endeavors.

#1 Find a Challenge

It is no secret that Jordan enjoyed prevailing over challenges; perhaps he enjoyed victories more than the game of basketball itself. If not for challenges, we would not need to get into the zone at all, and we all know that life is filled with challenges, but we often fail to acknowledge them. Michael Jordan approached everything as a challenge, and not just NBA games; he was known to be a relentless competitor on the golf course and even at the cards table.

Finding a challenge is fairly easy. Let’s say you need to prepare for a school assignment that requires an oral presentation; in this case, you must acknowledge that verbally articulating your project will be an ultimate show of mastery, something that you will not be able to fake. Once you rationalize the challenge, the next step would is to balance the skill ratio.

If you find yourself stressed by the challenge, there is a strong chance that your performance will be negatively impacted. It is important to assess your skills; if public speaking is not your strong point, lowering your stress levels in this regard will be vital, and this is when getting in the zone will be helpful. Don’t worry if the challenge does not balance evenly with your skill ratio at the beginning of the project. In the past, I have been challenged by having to write about topics such as economic quantitative easing, which I initially considered esoteric, but once I lowered my personal stress level on the subject, the research and words started to flow.

#2 Get Focused

The best way to channel the focus you need in order to flow is to think of it in physical terms. As previously mentioned, researchers athletes, artists, and scientists often use the analogy of flowing water to describe their state of mind at peak performance. Michael Jordan mentioned riding a wave as if he was a surfer. When marathon runners get into the zone, they think about various processes: Breathing, hydration, pacing, muscle power, and the impact of their running shoes on the road. They do not think about anything else because they are deeply focused on the matter at hand, which is not even winning the race but rather completing it as fast as possible.

When you get focused, you need to feel total physical awareness. If your school assignment involves speaking about how builders in Ancient Egypt approached geometry, you will have to practice out loud. Form a mental picture about how this ancient architects may have drawn shapes on the sand or what may have gone through their minds as they engraved blocks of limestone with the modern equivalent of blueprints. One technique I have recently added to my method involves listening to podcasts because they help me develop a more physical connection to subjects. Prior to writing this article, I listened to “Hideen Brain,” a podcast produced by a scientific journalist who contributes to National Public Radio.

#3 Find Your Peak Time

You are more likely to get into a state of flow during the most productive hours of the day, which may greatly vary from one individual to another.

Those who call themselves night owls will have an easier time getting into the zone when after the sun goes down, the temperature drops, and the buzzing sounds of modern life are lowered.

For many others, the early morning hours are the best, especially when they are preceded by a nice cup of coffee.

You may have to experience working at different times to find what works for you; keep in mind that this period is the one you feel more comfortable with, not necessarily the most active.

#4 No Distractions

The great British writer Virginia Woolf used to say that she felt lonely in the company of others; what she actually meant is that being around people made her miss the secluded writing spaces where she wrote numerous masterpieces. Woolf was not an antisocial person at all, but she abhorred distractions, and she is hardly alone in this regard.

Some people are able to get into the zone even with distractions all around them. I have to admit I am able to tune out the rest of the world as long as I have a decent pair of headphones on. The only distraction I allow is the music I play, which is invariably instrumental because listening to any lyrics will demand a shift in my focus. By eliminating distractions and sharpening your focus, you can get into a cognitive rhythm that will can deeply augment your learning.

One piece of advice: Remember how I mentioned that a state of flow feels great with one exception? When you enter hyperfocus mode without distractions, you may also enter a state of time distortion called the “deep now.” The efficient progress you are making feels so good that you may forget what time it is, but this can be solved by setting alarms.

Examples of Flow State of Mind

We have already reviewed professional athletes, musicians, and writers, but many individuals are able to get into the zone with ease for the purpose of self-improvement. I mentioned my friend, who is an advertising professional, and who has come up with very clever marketing campaigns thanks to her ability of getting in the zone.

Try to find examples in yourself and those around you; if you are into video gaming, think about a session when everything was going right. If you work at a warehouse, think about a time when you were given an assignment that you completed without even looking at the clock once. At school, think about a time when the lesson topic was so interesting that it made you straighten up in your chair.

In Conclusion

A constant flow is not very common; in fact, Buddhist scholars will tell you that this is almost impossible to achieve consciously, but if you strive to visit the zone as much as possible, the satisfaction you will get from creativity and productivity will be worth every effort.

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