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Creativity Tip 34 - Creativity and Flow

Flow is a state in which a person in an activity is fully immersed in a feeling of energised focus, full involvement, and success in the process of the activity. This is an ideal state for a creative project. It is probable that Michelangelo 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.

According to Mihaly 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 channelled, but positive, energised and aligned with the task at hand. The hallmark of flow is a feeling of spontaneous joy, even rapture, while performing a task. Similar mental states are described by the phrases: being on the ball, being in the zone, being in the groove. The teachings of Buddhism speak of a state of mind known as the "action of inaction" or "doing without doing" that greatly resembles the idea of flow.

But what is flow made up from?

Csíkszentmihályi identifies the following ten factors which can accompany an experience of flow:

1. Clear goals - expectations and rules are understood and goals are attainable and align appropriately with one's skill set and abilities. The challenge level and skill level should both be high.

1. Concentration - 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.)

1. Absence of the feeling of self-consciousness - the merging of action and awareness leaves no room for conscious self consideration.

1. Distorted sense of time - one's subjective experience of time is altered – often there is no sense of time passing.

1. Being in the moment - direct and immediate feedback occurs, so successes and failures in the course of the activity are apparent, and behaviours can be adjusted as needed immediately.

1. Balance between ability level and challenge - the activity is neither too easy nor too difficult.

1. Control - a sense of being in charge of the situation or activity.

1. Intrinsic reward - the activity is a goal in itself, so there is an effortlessness of action.

1. Outward focus - a lack of awareness of bodily needs (to the extent that one can reach a point of great hunger or fatigue without realising it)

1. Merging of action and awareness - becoming absorbed in the activity, and focus of awareness is narrowed down to the activity itself,

Csíkszentmihályi hypothesised that people with several very specific personality traits may be better able to achieve flow 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 these traits may have a greater preference for "high-action-opportunity, high-skills situations that stimulate them and encourage growth". It is in such high-challenge, high-skills situations that people are most likely to enter the flow state and these will be different for every person.

Some tips from Mihaly to enhance your creativity:

• Try to be surprised by something every day. It could be something you see, hear or read about. Stop to look at the unusual car parked at the curb, taste the new item on the cafeteria menu, actually listen to your colleague at the office. How is this different from other similar cars, dishes, conversations? What is the essence? (..) Life is nothing more than a stream of experiences - the more widely and deeply you swim in it, the richer your life will be.

• Try to surprise at least one person every day. Comfortable routines are great when they save energy for doing what you really care about, but if you are still searching, they restrict and limit the future.

• Write down every day what surprised you and how you surprised others. After a few days you can reread what you wrote down and reflect on the past experiences. One of the surest ways to enrich life is to make experiences less fleeting, so that the most memorable, interesting, and important events are not lost forever a few hours after they occurred.

• Wake up in the morning with a specific goal to look forward to. Everyone can discover at least one thing every day that is worth waking up for. Eventually most of the day should consist of tasks you look forward to, until you feel that getting up in the morning is a privilege, not a chore.

• If you do anything well, it becomes enjoyable. The more activities we do with excellence and style, the more life becomes intrinsically rewarding.

Creativity coaching can help with your creative states, so you can find more connections to successful ways of achieving your goals and dealing with your challenges.

Click here to arrange an introductory session to find out more.