How To Get Into A State Of Flow

Authored by Mike Donghia via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

My most productive periods are when I lose track of time and become completely absorbed in my task. This delightful state of strain-free hyperfocus is commonly called being in “the zone” or “a state of flow.”

Ground Picture/Shutterstock

As I’m writing this article, I’m trying to achieve that somewhat elusive state. When I get into flow, I’ll know it because I’ll stop thinking about the idea of working. I’ll feel energized and excited about the work, and all distractions will fade away.

My state of flow varies across a variety of activities. It can happen while engaging in physical labor or exercise, hanging out with friends, completing chores around the house, solving a mental problem at work, writing an article, reading a book, or doing anything that takes effort and involvement.

Given my extreme aversion to boredom, what I like most about locking in a state of flow is that everything seems more interesting. Any tendency toward overthinking or procrastination just vanishes, and I become totally focused on keeping going.

If there were a safe way to induce the flow mindset every time I worked, my life would be radically different. However, not finding one hasn’t stopped me from trying to make it happen more frequently with some reasonable degree of success.

What has worked for me in this arena, based on the trial and error of my own life experience, is the following:

1. Tune Out the Voices in Your Head

Step one is a clear mind. You can’t have any other thoughts or voices in your head besides those about the work you’re doing. That definitely means not listening to a podcast while you work or wondering about anything else going on in your life. Laser-like focus at the expense of everything else is what you need.

2. Work Faster

I’ve found that the cadence at which I work is an important variable in inducing a state of flow. You should not only try to work just a bit faster than your natural pace, but you should also eliminate as many pauses and stops as you can. This works by forcing you to not overthink and to rely more on your instincts.

3. Avoid Perfectionism

Related to the point above, you absolutely can’t have any worries about doing great work. The more pressure you add to get things right or perfect, the more self-conscious you’ll be. This applies whether you’re doing intellectual work or just hanging out with friends. Just bring your best self forward and don’t worry about whether it’s good enough—that’s a silly worry because, of course, you’re enough.

4. Play Rhythmic, Ambient Music

When I really want to get in the zone, I turn on some rhythmic music that doesn’t focus on words. Electronic dance music seems to do the trick for me. What you want is a steady driving beat that gets into your bones and keeps things moving forward. I find this works for both physical and mental labor and, surprisingly, even for keeping energy high when hanging out with friends.

[ZH: Or some 'less than Ambient’ music?]

5. Do 1 Thing at a Time

Anytime you switch your brain away from your work, you lose all the momentum you have built up and will have to start again. You have to keep your head down and locked in. Even though a state of flow makes this 10 times easier, there might still be the occasional temptation to pick up your phone or lean back in your chair and stretch—don’t do it. Once you’re in flow, don’t do anything that might disturb it.

6. Make Decisions Intuitively

Systematic, rational thought is basically the opposite of flow, which is about doing. Some types of work and conversations aren’t natural fits for flow and require a more rational thought process, which is fine. Be sure to recognize and separate these two types to bring the best version of yourself into each one. Most importantly, when you’re in the zone, don’t stop and start overthinking a problem. Just keep moving, even if that means imperfection or leaving something to come back to later. The flow itself is too valuable to waste.

I hope that you see that being in a state of flow is about more than productivity. Focused work will make you more productive, but for me, it’s about so much more. Once you consistently start achieving this relaxed, stress-free work mindset, you’ll want it more and more. It feels good and brings out a creative side of yourself that you’ll want to enjoy more often.

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