Working or not, or while taking long breaks in between work…how do you spend the time is really important.
I’m sure you’ve had days when you felt unproductive and tired. You feel like there's nothing interesting to do and you look out to for opportunities to call it a day.
What make you think that way is the fact that you are not in the zone, or that the flow is missing from your daily activities.
While reading “Ikigai”, a gem of a writing by Héctor García &Francesc Miralles , I came across the importance of finding flow in everything we do. Even your free time should consist of some activity which distracts you from your perennial work, yet should provide the flow, which gives you something to look forward to everyday.
Flow can be described as the pleasure, delight, creativity, and process when you are completely immersed in life.
It is what gives one the optimal experience or the ability to balance out life as we know it.
Flow is what makes time an irrelevant concept, and will make you completely present in the moment. And before you know it, you don’t feel like it is work anymore. It becomes a part of your life.
For a programmer it can be coding and learning a new scripting language, while for a gamer it can be spending an afternoon with a brand new edition of Halo and forget about the world going by until we notice the sunset and realize we haven’t had dinner.
When you flow, you are focused and engaged on one concrete task without any distractions. If you often find yourself losing focus while working on something you consider important, there are several strategies you can adapt to increase your chances of achieving flow as quoted in the book:
1. Knowing what to do
2. Knowing how to do it
3. Knowing how well you are doing it
4. Knowing where to go
5. Perceiving significant challenges
6. Perceiving significant skills
7. Being free from distractions
The main benefits of the Flow state is that your work becomes enjoyable and you are completely present.
You get so much done and you feel energized all the time, it’s like your brain is fully activated. In fact if you can sustain that state you can go on for hours without breaking a sweat.
Who knows, this flow can help you achieve your Ikigai, a reason to jump out of bed every morning.
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