“Flow state: How to trigger the best performance of your life”

Originally posted in our November 2022 Top of Mind Newsletter.

Have you ever found yourself in a state of near effortless focus? Where you aren’t paying attention to your phone or other tasks and instead are hyper-concentrated on a particular project or job. This situation is what it is like to be in a state of flow. 

Long-time followers of our work at ELI will know that the “Godfather of Flow Psychology,” Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, has profoundly influenced our work to understand the entrepreneurial mindset. Building off of his work, researchers have found 22 “flow triggers” with the potential for many others. In this interview with Big Think, author Steven Kotler breaks down how to get into a flow state using these triggers and breaks down the critical intrinsic motivators within all of us. 

Researchers often cite high-performing athletes and successful artists since these people are often entering into a flow state. But what’s encouraging about this state is that we all contain the fundamental motivational factors that could enable us to enter the flow. Moreover, it isn’t specific to any domain or situation. We can practice getting there by learning the flow triggers that impact us. Knowing how to tap into this state could prove extremely useful when setting out on an entrepreneurial discovery journey.

So, what changes can we start to make to get ourselves into a state of flow? 

Get into the flow