Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience
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- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
- ISBN：0061339202
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Summary
Psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi's famous investigations of "optimal experience" have revealed that what makes an experience genuinely satisfying is a state of consciousness called flow。 During flow， people typically experience deep enjoyment， creativity， and a total involvement with life。 In this new edition of his groundbreaking classic work， Csikszentmihalyi demonstrates the ways this positive state can be controlled， not just left to chance。 Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience teaches how， by ordering the information that enters our consciousness， we can discover true happiness and greatly improve the quality of our lives。
Reviews
Hamad AlMannai
，
Csikszentmihalyi is the psychologist who identified and named the flow state in the 1970’s， colloquially known as being in the zone。 The state you’re at when you go in nature walks or when you do something and get so absorbed in it that time flies。 The more you know about the nature of the flow state， the easier it’ll he to access while you’re doing the work you need to do， chores， and your quotidian tasks。 The flow state is also a sustainable form of happiness。 Being able to be in the zone at w Csikszentmihalyi is the psychologist who identified and named the flow state in the 1970’s， colloquially known as being in the zone。 The state you’re at when you go in nature walks or when you do something and get so absorbed in it that time flies。 The more you know about the nature of the flow state， the easier it’ll he to access while you’re doing the work you need to do， chores， and your quotidian tasks。 The flow state is also a sustainable form of happiness。 Being able to be in the zone at work is like having a superpower。 You’ll be able to enjoy it and maybe even look forward to it instead of waiting for the minutes to pass。 He’s on to something in this book。 In this book as he demystifies the flow state and analyses its nature。 I recommend it。 。。。more
Sean Chang
，
對於重拾生活的動力具有幫助，可以藉由書中的闡述試圖勾勒人生的方向。It is helpful to motivate the enthusiasm for life。 Also one could figure out a direction of life by description of the book， at least， a possibility。
Simba
，
This book falls into my "has been on my reading list for a long time because a number of authors have referenced it way too many times" category of books。As soon as I could get the audio， I didn't hesitate to。 Funny enough， a huge chunk of it was spent listening to it from LTPS， the Psychology lecture theatre at the University of Zambia。It was a surprisingly easy listen。 Short too。 Surprising because I thought articulating and explaining the quasi-spiritual experience we have when we're deeply i This book falls into my "has been on my reading list for a long time because a number of authors have referenced it way too many times" category of books。As soon as I could get the audio， I didn't hesitate to。 Funny enough， a huge chunk of it was spent listening to it from LTPS， the Psychology lecture theatre at the University of Zambia。It was a surprisingly easy listen。 Short too。 Surprising because I thought articulating and explaining the quasi-spiritual experience we have when we're deeply immersed in some activity would be harder than Milihy actually managed to do。 Then to do it in just under 2 hours of audio？ Wow。In spite of that， it was almost immediately easy to see why the book has been referenced in almost all the self-improvement， habit-development， high-achievement books out there。 I was drawn to the last part of the book about an Autotelic Personality through the example of Frank， an executive （if I remember correctly） that has an appealing leadership style and magnetic personality。 This is because， among other things， according to Milihy， he sets goals for each of his interactions with people and is consequently engaged actively when he meets people。 He pays attention to the events around him， making evaluations as to how and whether they fit into his goals， but not in a selfish way。 He does so to maintain his engagement with people and activities。 The "Autotelic Self"， an idea that I resonated with massively， has shades of Adler's Individual Psychology， a branch of Psychology that is of immense interest to me。 Adler emphasised the value of goals， stating that humans are actually goal-driven beings， using them to find meaning in our lives。 Milihy adds goal-setting as a key part of the Autotelic Self。 It helps a person see challenges as opportunities for action， and is thus never bored， always engaged in some activity。From the time I read Adler's ideas in 'The Courage to be Disliked'， I was hooked and tried to implement a lot of his principles for "good living" in my life。 Little did I know that I was inadvertently becoming an Autotelic Self in the process。 I suffer from a significantly less amount of social anxiety in comparison to my teen years， and I owe a lot of that to books like this - that open up the mind to the idea that things can be different - something that Adler himself said and believed wholeheartedly。 。。。more
Vitalijus Gafurovas
，
Labai seniai norėjau susipažinti su šią knyga。 Tikrai gera knyga su labai svarbia žinute apie proceso， tikslų， prasmės svarbą。 Labai rekomenduočiau bepradedantiems domėtis psichologija。 Sakyčiau net must read'as。 Vis dėlto， nuvilia， kad knygos eigoje gana stipriai imama kartotis。 Labai seniai norėjau susipažinti su šią knyga。 Tikrai gera knyga su labai svarbia žinute apie proceso， tikslų， prasmės svarbą。 Labai rekomenduočiau bepradedantiems domėtis psichologija。 Sakyčiau net must read'as。 Vis dėlto， nuvilia， kad knygos eigoje gana stipriai imama kartotis。 。。。more
Jvekks
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Mihaly， an accomplished researcher of psychology， provides a comprehensive narrative of humans "optimal experience": the state of inner experience when we concentrate on a task with all of our attention such that all sense of time and self-consciousnesses disappear。 He provides many narrative examples， and practical tools to cultivate the optimal experience i。e。 Flow。 It begins with discipline: eliminate distractions then organize our attention。 This book helped me with some immediate improvemen Mihaly， an accomplished researcher of psychology， provides a comprehensive narrative of humans "optimal experience": the state of inner experience when we concentrate on a task with all of our attention such that all sense of time and self-consciousnesses disappear。 He provides many narrative examples， and practical tools to cultivate the optimal experience i。e。 Flow。 It begins with discipline: eliminate distractions then organize our attention。 This book helped me with some immediate improvements to my practice in reading， meditation， and exercise。 I think I'll even revisit this book in a year because it's jam packed with useful information。 One of the premises of "flow" is that we need to develop our attention and conscious experience to overcome the roots of discontent。 The external world can affect our internal state， but the point of Flow is to cultivate higher concentration。 As humans， we are inevitably a byproduct of our genetic heritage and our social environment。 So our instincts and society have requirements that we must fulfill。 This is often the majority of our conscious experience。 For example， we want food， water， and shelter etc。。。Our society wants us to work hard， get an education， buy a house etc。 These are also entering our conscious experience and creating a hierarchy of goals and values for our consciousness to interpret and order。 Yet， consciousness is the one tool that allows us to transcend our genetic heritage and social environment。 Mihaly's ideas and writing often make parallels to the Eastern Yogi's who learn to suppress their hunger to the point of death， or the monk that is able to self-immolate and endure the feeling of pain to the point of death。 In fact， this whole book is a remix eastern philosophy and ideals。 Mihaly simply reformulated old ideas for a new generation。 In fact， there is a section of the book where he explicitly calls out the processes for cultivating a powerful meditation practice is identical to the work required to create flow states。This is the only reason I didn't give it 5-stars。 。。。more
Aaditya Ura
，
Rather than telling you to do and do not things， The author tells you the psychology of the brain， patterns and how the human mind behaves in certain situations， the default（autopilot） mode， and how to be autotelic。In addition to sharing the brief & in-depth analysis of happiness from a psychological perspective， the author discusses anthropological development， existentialist philosophy， and the meaning of life itself， delivering an experience that was both frightening and reorienting。 "Enjoyme Rather than telling you to do and do not things， The author tells you the psychology of the brain， patterns and how the human mind behaves in certain situations， the default（autopilot） mode， and how to be autotelic。In addition to sharing the brief & in-depth analysis of happiness from a psychological perspective， the author discusses anthropological development， existentialist philosophy， and the meaning of life itself， delivering an experience that was both frightening and reorienting。 "Enjoyment appears at the boundary between boredom and anxiety when the challenges are just balanced with the person's capacity to act。" 。。。more
Cloudtet
，
Illuminating and incredibly well written， it changed my view on a number of things。 It's quite rare that I come across something， a perspective on things or a concept or something， that is completely new to me in a way that I find even somewhat eye-opening， so reading a book where that happens even once is something I would deem a successful experience， but here these experiences were raining down on me like it was monsoon season。 It was like I was reading about the outside world for the first t Illuminating and incredibly well written， it changed my view on a number of things。 It's quite rare that I come across something， a perspective on things or a concept or something， that is completely new to me in a way that I find even somewhat eye-opening， so reading a book where that happens even once is something I would deem a successful experience， but here these experiences were raining down on me like it was monsoon season。 It was like I was reading about the outside world for the first time。As if that wasn't enough， Csikszentmihalyi has a way with words。 Elegant ways of phrasing things abound to such an extent that I would enjoy reading this book just looking at the way he constructs sentences and uses language。 It's beautiful to look at。For anyone who is interested in leading a fulfilling life （so everyone … ？）， this is essential reading， especially if not already familiar with the concept。 。。。more
Chris
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This isn't usually the kind of thing I read， but flow is a very zeitgeisty term so I thought I'd give it a go。 Csikszentmihalyi states at the outset that he hasn't included references to studies in the main text in order to keep things simpler， but I would have preferred this to his philosophical， digressive writing style。 Flow is essentially when you're so absorbed in something that you lose track of time。 It also has other qualifiers like it has to be intrinsically motivated and challenging to This isn't usually the kind of thing I read， but flow is a very zeitgeisty term so I thought I'd give it a go。 Csikszentmihalyi states at the outset that he hasn't included references to studies in the main text in order to keep things simpler， but I would have preferred this to his philosophical， digressive writing style。 Flow is essentially when you're so absorbed in something that you lose track of time。 It also has other qualifiers like it has to be intrinsically motivated and challenging to some extent。 But the scope of 'flow' seems to be too wide-ranging to me （from surgery to drinking a glass of water） and for some reason he singles out TV as a non-example。 I guess the main idea is the pursuit of your own goals leads to happiness， however defined。 Some of the ideas were interesting， though from reading around the subject it sounds like they're not really novel。 What IS novel is the experience sampling method he developed， but that is hardly discussed; instead， the focus is on anecdata。 。。。more
Kyle Monsees
，
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi’s work on the psychology of optimal experience is one of the rare works to make significant claims about humanity that are intuitively accessible to the average person。 The description of flow， a state in which a person is intensely invested in an enjoyable， though-centering activity， is universal in its experience by artists， monks and mechanics， children and the elderly alike。 A challenging activity that requires skills， a persons complete attention to the achievement o Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi’s work on the psychology of optimal experience is one of the rare works to make significant claims about humanity that are intuitively accessible to the average person。 The description of flow， a state in which a person is intensely invested in an enjoyable， though-centering activity， is universal in its experience by artists， monks and mechanics， children and the elderly alike。 A challenging activity that requires skills， a persons complete attention to the achievement of the activity， an activity with clear goals and feedback， the disregard for other external distractions while engaged， the feeling of control over the outcome， loss of alert-consciousness， and the transformation of the experience of time characterize this state。 People can experience flow continually through bettering their skills， increasing the complexity of the task， and identifying ways the task can be integrated as it increases in complexity。 The state of flow represents the autotelic experience， performing an activity for its enjoyment， rather than for any external reason。 People experience flow through physical and mental pursuits， through work， and through connecting with others whether they be the self， family， or community。 In the end， the aim is to identify an overarching life goal or theme that can sustain the experience of flow across a lifetime and integrate smaller， disparate goals toward long-term ends。 One of the best books on improving your life by understanding what you enjoy， doing those activities， and integrating them to identify a larger purpose。 。。。more
Azhar Joosub
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A tough read， but a truly enlightening one
Borys Kho
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Very inspiring， insightful and practical book about happiness through the "flow" experience。 Slightly let down by the book's age and some of the research being more than 30 years old。 Very inspiring， insightful and practical book about happiness through the "flow" experience。 Slightly let down by the book's age and some of the research being more than 30 years old。 。。。more
Thao Nguyen
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The book contains a plethora of information that needs time to absorb， a comprehensive guide to truly control oneself and enjoy in each and every moment。 "Flow" is defined as a zen-state of concentration where you are so involved in a sole activity that nothing else seems to matter。 I will probably write a super long review for this book later， but let's point out one point I really learnt from this book: to make activities more enjoyable， you must develop an "autotelic" （Greek origin: self+goal The book contains a plethora of information that needs time to absorb， a comprehensive guide to truly control oneself and enjoy in each and every moment。 "Flow" is defined as a zen-state of concentration where you are so involved in a sole activity that nothing else seems to matter。 I will probably write a super long review for this book later， but let's point out one point I really learnt from this book: to make activities more enjoyable， you must develop an "autotelic" （Greek origin: self+goal） self" to immerse in every activities and get the intrinsic reward from the joy of doing it。 This is definitely a really important book that I was really lucky to came across and be able to finish it。 Although the author is a psychology professor and the book is a condensed result of various preceding researches， he was so kind to make complex concepts intelligible to the average reader， but still includes an enormous amount of literature review for further readings for those who are interested。 。。。more
Dharmesh Patel
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One of the best books on finding purpose and meaning in life。 One of those books that you want to savor and keep going back to to extract valuable insights。 If you want to find optimal experience in life and want to understand how everything that you do in life can be translated and transformed into an enjoyable experience， this masterpiece is a must read。
Christoffer
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2，5 stars。 Could've been A LOT shorter than it was while still getting the message across。 2，5 stars。 Could've been A LOT shorter than it was while still getting the message across。 。。。more
Zec
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Reads like the ravings of a drunk guy in his second language。 No discernible structure， confusing flow of thought and horribly wooden prose。 I read a third before giving up。
Sufen
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Best book I have read in a long time。 Mihaly's theories on happiness， joy and making sense of the human experience - why we behave the way we do - was captivating， inspiring and well-written。 Although his writing is dense and requires careful reading， it is packed with lots of useful nuggets on how to achieve flow in various areas of our lives。 I enjoyed his use of the right words and analogies to bring concepts to life。 I feel like I understand myself a lot better after reading this book。 Best book I have read in a long time。 Mihaly's theories on happiness， joy and making sense of the human experience - why we behave the way we do - was captivating， inspiring and well-written。 Although his writing is dense and requires careful reading， it is packed with lots of useful nuggets on how to achieve flow in various areas of our lives。 I enjoyed his use of the right words and analogies to bring concepts to life。 I feel like I understand myself a lot better after reading this book。 。。。more
Usman Salim
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A great book that explains why people stagnate in adulthood， why people are obsessed with TV， why many resort to drugs and other illicit activity， why our generation isn't happier despite all the luxuries and technological advances， how to avoid the dreaded existential void， how and why one should make the best of less-than-ideal circumstances， and a roadmap to overall happiness and fulfillment。 Probably one of the only self-help books one needs， with lots of scientific backing and compelling ex A great book that explains why people stagnate in adulthood， why people are obsessed with TV， why many resort to drugs and other illicit activity， why our generation isn't happier despite all the luxuries and technological advances， how to avoid the dreaded existential void， how and why one should make the best of less-than-ideal circumstances， and a roadmap to overall happiness and fulfillment。 Probably one of the only self-help books one needs， with lots of scientific backing and compelling examples to get its point across。 。。。more
Maria Baronov
，
Pretty simple steps。 Very well explained。 Applicable to a lot of people。 Flow， or how to be in the zone， is a good guide of how to make the best to enjoy your time on earth。 It does take for granted healthy family relationships that have helped you build good self esteem， or the lack of several mental health disorders， but I’m just seeing it from where some of my patients would see it。 As for me I can see how I have put some of these points into play and they do work。
San Pimpelmees
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Ok boomer。
Joe Bathelt
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I read this book because both the author and the book are quite influential in positive psychology。 In fact， I had come across the central concept of flow many times when reading books on various topics， including education， game design， and mindfulness。 Naturally， I was curious to get to the source and learn more about the enigmatic concept of flow。 The book helped to clarify the central concept and contrast it with mindfulness， which seems superficially similar。 I also liked the examples and c I read this book because both the author and the book are quite influential in positive psychology。 In fact， I had come across the central concept of flow many times when reading books on various topics， including education， game design， and mindfulness。 Naturally， I was curious to get to the source and learn more about the enigmatic concept of flow。 The book helped to clarify the central concept and contrast it with mindfulness， which seems superficially similar。 I also liked the examples and concrete suggestions that help the reader to find flow in their own life。 However， I did not expect the book to be quite so esoteric。 The book definitely belongs more in the self-help than the science category。 For instance， in chapter 2 on consciousness， the author writes that “there is no reason to rule out the possibility that eventually we shall be able to bend spoons with brain waves。” There were many more examples where the discussion of flow is very close to mysticism and it feels like the author is over-egging things far beyond what can be scientifically established。 Nonetheless， I expect that many readers will find plenty of material to reflect upon and potentially integrate into their lives。 For professionals， it can provide a different way of thinking about typical and atypical psychology。 。。。more
Sergio Barbosa
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Interesting approaches exposed to the autor to keep oneself in Flow。
Kevin Macdonald
，
You know those rare， wonderful books that almost seem to enter your life via divine intervention， where they speak to and address a specific set of concerns and issues that you were semi-conscious of but lacked the necessary perspective or information to articulate， let alone resolve？ Well， this book is one of those， at least for me。 It feels like a well-timed gift from the divine。•I’m not really going to get into the contents of the book。 I just want to emphasize that I believe this is a book a You know those rare， wonderful books that almost seem to enter your life via divine intervention， where they speak to and address a specific set of concerns and issues that you were semi-conscious of but lacked the necessary perspective or information to articulate， let alone resolve？ Well， this book is one of those， at least for me。 It feels like a well-timed gift from the divine。•I’m not really going to get into the contents of the book。 I just want to emphasize that I believe this is a book any thinking person—let me stress THINKING person—will benefit from。 It contains none of the fluff， the nonsense， or the superficiality present in so many of these books which pretend to try and speak to a set of individual and cultural needs。 No—this book is an academic， cross-cultural， historical examination of the human condition and human behaviour， and it is informed by millennia of philosophical， religious， political， economic， social， literary， and anthropological scholarship， and it’s also rounded out by contemporary psychological， psychiatric， and neuroscientific discoveries。 It’s a cross-disciplinary analysis of what we mean when we talk about happiness， meaning， and fulfillment， and it is a heartfelt， honest， realistic， and useful book。•I believe I read somewhere else that Mihaly’s life was greatly influenced by his time spent in a concentration camp during world war 2 as a child。 He became interested in how people overcame their psychological trauma or how they succumbed to it。 He recognized the need for agency and control—where we must feel we have the power and ability to determine our own destinies even if we live in a world that tries to restrict our autonomy—but he also discusses the various social and cultural forces which bind us more often than they liberate us， and examines the forces that contribute to their construction， their perpetuation， as well as how we can find cracks within the surface that expose areas that allow us to exert our will。•What Mihaly has to say about enjoyment， about meaning， about fulfillment， and most of all about engagement—engagement in our relationships and friendships; engagement in our studies and interests; engagement in our work and hobbies， among many other things—is valuable no matter the time period。 We must cultivate focus。 We must cultivate determination。 We must cultivate an ambition to seek out challenges， and then strive to overcome those challenges。 We must cultivate a reasonable approach to seeking challenges， where we don’t proverbially bite off more than we can chew。 We must seek self-refinement， and self-improvement， and we must foster a presence of mind that seeks not to find repose in leisurely activities that distract， dull， and diminish our quality of life。 When we drink water， we must think about the water: what’s the temperature like， how does my tongue respond， how do the kernels of moisture react against the back of my throat， and how does the sensation feel as I swallow it？ We must learn to cultivate the power of attention， or the power of mindfulness， and we must understand that consciousness is a resource which actively seeks direction， and that the mind can act as a director。 Consciousness isn’t a free-flowing system that acts however it wishes—consciousness is subservient to individual will， and we can find glimpses of that control by reframing attitudes toward chores， toward leisure， toward work， toward love， toward music， toward sex， toward friendship， and toward anything the mind can observe。 。。。more
Sumit Sabnis
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You are in the flow， when all work is play， when nothing seems boring 。Cooking， running， learning or earning the secret is to be aware and discover the magic of being in flow before you die。
James Harling
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The flow model is great， however I felt the book dragged on too long for my liking。
Akshunya
，
There are a lot of ideas floating around in this book， and a solid understanding is possible only with a strong base of underlying ideas。 For that， there is nothing better than clear concise notes， as following:-CHAPTER 1: HAPPINESS REVISITED- Happiness can not be pursued， it must ensue， as the unintended side effect of one's personal dedication to a course greater than oneself。- Humans generally look towards partial solutions， like getting slim or rich， but solving these has nothing to do with There are a lot of ideas floating around in this book， and a solid understanding is possible only with a strong base of underlying ideas。 For that， there is nothing better than clear concise notes， as following:-CHAPTER 1: HAPPINESS REVISITED- Happiness can not be pursued， it must ensue， as the unintended side effect of one's personal dedication to a course greater than oneself。- Humans generally look towards partial solutions， like getting slim or rich， but solving these has nothing to do with Happiness。- The Root cause of discontentment is， that by design， Universe is hostile， full of chaos and indifferent towards the desires of human beings。- Every culture develops its myths and beliefs to shield its members from this chaos。 In the modern world， it is the hope of 'things will get better' with more money and affluence。- Religions no longer helpful to cope with the lack of meaning in life， being unsuitable to the modern world in the era of scientific rationality。- Failure of values and institutions puts the responsibility on oneself to create a meaningful and enjoyable life。 - Ability to find enjoyment regardless of external circumstances needs to be developed。 - The methods to control consciousness have been known for thousands of years but no longer workable in modern world due to 2 reasons:1。 The method can't be condensed into a formula， and then routinely applied。2。 Knowledge must be reformulated every time the cultural context changes。CHAPTER 2: THE ANATOMY OF CONSCIOUSNESS- Consciousness gives the ability to override biological instinct and the ability to respond， instead of reacting。- Consciousness can be defined as intentionally ordered information。Intention is the force that keeps the information in consciousness ordered， and is generated when one wants to accomplish something。- Attention determines what will or will not appear in consciousness and is the most important tool to improve the quality of experience。- Usually the outside information conflicts with the existing intentions and distracts us from carrying them out。 The state of flow is opposite in the sense that every information that is allowed to enter awareness helps to achieve our goal。- Self becomes complex as the result of flow: as it paradoxically becomes both unique （separate from others） and feels united with other people in the form of its expansion。CHAPTER 3: ENJOYMENT AND THE QUALITY OF LIFE- Pleasure does not bring happiness。 It does not add complexity to the self。- Enjoyment is characterized by a forward movement， a sense of accomplishment。- Pleasure can be felt without any effort， but to enjoy something effort is required to fully concentrate on that activity。- Enjoyment has 8 major components， and the state of flow consists of one or more of these:-1。 A challenging activity that requires skill。2。 The merging of action and awareness。3。 Clear goals and feedback。4。 Concentration on the task at hand。5。 The paradox of control。6。 The loss of self consciousness。7。 The transformation of time。8。 The Autotelic experience。。。。。。I dropped the idea after this chapter as this book is way more dense than I had imagined。 It definitely requires multiple readings。 Overall a good exposure to the philosophy of 'flow'。 I had some wrong ideas attached to the concept， which have been successfully cleared out after this first reading。 I want to read some fiction now， probably I am done with non fiction and it does not excite me the same way it did last year。 So one of the stars less from the rating is probably a reflection of that feeling。 。。。more
Areej
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 I really enjoyed the first 100 pages of FLOW by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi。 After the 5th chapter I felt I was reading the same idea over and over with detailed examples that were unnecessary。I had a reading slump in the middle of this book。 Parts that I enjoyed : Flow is the state in which people are so involved in an activity that nothing else seems to matter;the experience itself is so enjoyable that people will do it even at great cost， for the sheer sake of doing it。 It is crucial that one lea I really enjoyed the first 100 pages of FLOW by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi。 After the 5th chapter I felt I was reading the same idea over and over with detailed examples that were unnecessary。I had a reading slump in the middle of this book。 Parts that I enjoyed : Flow is the state in which people are so involved in an activity that nothing else seems to matter;the experience itself is so enjoyable that people will do it even at great cost， for the sheer sake of doing it。 It is crucial that one learn to transform jobs into flow - producing activities。 Overcoming a challenge inevitably leaves a person feeling more capable， more skilled。 When the flow episode is over， one feels more together than before not only internally but also with respect to other people and to the world in general。The phenomenology of enjoyment has 8 major components : 1st， the experience usually occurs when we confront tasks we have a chance of completing。 2nd: we must be able to concentrate on what we are doing。 3rd & 4th : the concentration is usually possible because the task undertaken has clear goals and provides immediate feedback。 5th: one acts with a deep but effortless involvment that removes from awareness the worries and frustrations of everyday life。 6th: enjoyable experiences allow people to exercise a sense of control over their actions。 7th: concern for the self disappears， yet paradoxically the sense of self emerges stronger after the flow experience is over。 Finally， the sense of the duration of time is altered hours pass by in minutes。 The combination of all these elements causes a sense of deep enjoyment。 The roof could fall in and， if it missed you， you would be unaware of it。The key element of an optimal experience is that it is an end in itself。 Even if initially undertaken for other reasons， the activity that consumes us becomes intrinsically rewardingEven the simplest physical act becomes enjoyable when it is trans- formed so as to produce flow。 The essential steps in this process are: （a） tO set an overall goal， and as many subgoals as are realistically feasible; （b） to find ways of measuring progress in terms of the goals chosen; （c） to keep concentrating on what one is doing， and to keep making finer and finer distinctions in the challenges involved in the activity; （d） to develop the skills necessary to interact with the opportunities available; And （e） to keep raising the stakes if the activity becomes boring。Enjoyable events occur when a person has not only met some prior expectation or satisfied a need or a desire but also gone beyond what he or she has been programmed to do and achieved something unexpected， perhaps something even unimagined before。 For those who don't have the right skills， the activity is not challenging， it is simply meaningless。 The 2 theoretically most important dimensions of the experience， challenges and skills， are rspresented in the 2 axes of a diagram。Initially a person has no skills and minimal challenges。 The person is likely to enjoy it because the difficulty is just right for the rudimentary skills。 So at this point he will probably be at flow。 But this can't stay long 。 If he keeps practicing， his skills are bound to improve and then he will （grow bored） 。 Or he meets a more practiced opponent in which case he realizes that there are much harder challenges for him （anxiety）Neither bordom nor anxiety are positive experiences。To move from bored to flow we need to increase the challenge。 The way back from anxiety to flow requires increasing the skills。One cannot enjoy doing the same thing at the same level for longGetting control of life is never easy， and sometimes it can be definitely painful。What would really satisfy people is not getting slim or rich， but feeling good about their lives。 By stretching skills， by reaching toward higher challenges， a person becomes an increasingly extraordinary individual。 While humankind collectivly has increased its material powers a thousandfold， it has not advanced very far in terms of improving the content of experience。 Adult irrationality is often the result of childhood frustrations。 To overcome the anxieties and depressions of contemporary life， individual must become independent of the social environment to the degree that they no longer respond exclusively in terms of its rewards and punishments。 To achieve such autonomy， a person has to learn to provide rewards to herself。 In the treadmill of social controls， the person keeps reaching for a prize that always dissolves in his hands。 There is no question that to survive， and especially to survive in a complex society， it is necessary to work for external goals and to postpone immediate gratifications。 The function of consciousness is to represent information about what is happening outside and inside the organism in such a way that it can be evaluated and acted upon by the body。 Complexity is the result of two broad psychological processes :differentiation and interegation。 Differentiation implies a movement toward uniqueness， toward separating oneself from others。 Interegation refers to its opposite :a union with other people， with ideas and entities beyond the self。 A complex self is one that succeed in combining these opposie tendencies。 There are two main strategies we can adopt to improve the quality of life。 The first is to try making external conditions match our goals。 The second is to change how we experience external conditions to make them fit our goals better。 One simple way to find challenges is to enter a competitive situation。 There is A golden ratio between challenges and skills。When experience is intrinsically rewarding life is justified in the pressnt， instead of being held hostage to a hypothetical future gain。Every person， no matter how unfit he or she is， can rise a little higher， go a little faster， and grow to be a little stronger。 The joy of surpassing the limits of the body is open to all。 。。。more
Emre Sevinç
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This beautiful text reads almost like an ode to the best parts of being a human。In this no-nonsense distillation of wisdom， seen through the perspective of modern psychological research， Prof。 Csikszentmihalyi provides us with a pretty well grounded framework to interpret a lot of aspects pertaining to the methods of dealing with everyday experience that can sometimes be grueling for some people。 But if the book was only about that， it wouldn't be worth reading more than thirty years after its f This beautiful text reads almost like an ode to the best parts of being a human。In this no-nonsense distillation of wisdom， seen through the perspective of modern psychological research， Prof。 Csikszentmihalyi provides us with a pretty well grounded framework to interpret a lot of aspects pertaining to the methods of dealing with everyday experience that can sometimes be grueling for some people。 But if the book was only about that， it wouldn't be worth reading more than thirty years after its first publication: the author draws from great traditions from East and West， and synthesizes these with his scientific discoveries， creating a modern and easy-to-understand set of principles that can act as guide for a meaningful life that is full of satisfaction。Be careful！ This is not a self-help book， to be consumed like fast food。 As the author himself warns in the introduction， every generation， every person needs to rediscover the basic principles， no matter how obvious or logical they might sound: reading and understanding aren't the same things。 There are no shortcuts presented， there's no how-to manual hidden in the middle of it。 On the other hand， there are critical and sharp questions， as well as very memorable anecdotes to force you evaluate your constantly evolving relationship with yourself， your work， family， friends， and challenges。I think I'd like this book if I read it when it was first published， back when I was only a high school student。 But I read this book thirty years later， as a middle aged man， raising two children， and I was able to relate to it more strongly than I expected。 Not only because it made me remember the precious past moments during which I was consumed by challenging intellectual and physical activities， forgetting myself， forgetting what it means to be happy， and therefore truly enjoying the moment， but also because reading it during this phase of my life， the book struck a lot of chords， forcing me to evaluate the essence of a lot of things that make up what I call 'life' and 'myself'。People from all walks of life are bound to find at least one part in this book that will relate to their lives and concerns， and I can recommend this book without hesitation whoever you are。 。。。more
Celine Chew
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It’s difficult to pinpoint what was absolutely amazing about this book because it covers a few key areas。 Firstly， it focuses on how we use or gather everything in our very being （our innate being， our personality， our character， our upbringing， our experiences） to channel it into a force or consciousness that allows us to be truly “in the moment” without regards to time and environment。 It is then we reach the peak of our work。 Then， it questions the very core of every human on earth: with all It’s difficult to pinpoint what was absolutely amazing about this book because it covers a few key areas。 Firstly， it focuses on how we use or gather everything in our very being （our innate being， our personality， our character， our upbringing， our experiences） to channel it into a force or consciousness that allows us to be truly “in the moment” without regards to time and environment。 It is then we reach the peak of our work。 Then， it questions the very core of every human on earth: with all that we have and are， what is our greater purpose on earth and how do we reach that purpose in full flow that is harmonious with nature？ This book drew my attention to what really matters and how I need to view my current situation at home， at work， my relationships and make hard choices。 。。。more
Patrick Mihalaras
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3。8
Derek Henderson
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