Accessing Flow States

Remember our curiosity engine? It’s the vehicle that can inspire flow states and identify superpowers. A flow state is being in the zone where the concept of time fades and your subconscious takes over. If you want to connect the dots, this is where it happens.

A snippet from our curiosity engine post. “Flow happens when your skill level is slightly challenged, but you're confident enough in your abilities to dig a little deeper.”

Flow has been studied by researchers for years. I found a new experiment from Drexel University’s Creativity Research Lab. They used EEGs to study brain activity when jazz guitar players improvise.

The results were not surprising.

Two themes emerged that helped these musicians access flow state.

Expertise in their domain - The musicians with more experience were able to access flow more consistently.
Ability to let go - They found that flow was linked to reduced activity in the executive control region of the brain, which is the planning, organizing and self-monitoring area of the brain. 

These themes also apply to what I’ve learned over the last six years at WTKY.

What if we considered expertise in domain more of a self-awareness metric? Through journaling, I’ve been able to establish a communications channel with myself to capture my thoughts and ideas. What if I can become an expert in the process of myself through journaling?

Within the WTKY community, we discuss the power of doing things without any expectation of what they may become. We also teach methods of activating divergent thinking, which requires a dose of vulnerability and a playful willingness to be silly. Synthesis is our process of connecting the dots captured in your journal pages, and one of the keys to success here is the ability to let go.

Coincidence? I’d like to think not.

The study’s lead, John Kourinos says “A practical implication of these results is that productive flow states can be attained by practice to build up expertise in a particular creative outlet coupled with training to withdraw conscious control when enough expertise has been achieved. This can be the basis for new techniques for instructing people to produce creative ideas."

Because, science.

Become an expert in yourself and release expectations.

Read the complete study here - https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0028393224000393?via%3Dihub