Flow occurs when a task’s challenge is balanced with one’s skill. In fact, both the task challenge and skill level have to be high. So long as that task’s challenge is high, and so are your skills, you should be able to achieve flow.Researchers also know that people can experience flow by using interactive media, like playing a video game. Video game developers are very familiar with the idea, and they think hard about how to design games so that players feel flow.

What causes flow?

Flow is a state of “optimal experience” that each of us can incorporate into our everyday lives. One characterized by immense joy that makes a life worth living.In the last years, researchers have gained a vast store of knowledge about what it is like to be in flow and how experiencing it is important for our overall mental health and well-being. In short, we are completely absorbed in a highly rewarding activity – and not in our inner monologues – when we feel flow.

The state of flow

When people feel flow, they are in a state of intense concentration. <ul><li>Their thoughts are focused on an experience rather than on themselves. </li><li>They lose a sense of time and feel as if there is a merging of their actions and their awareness. That they have control over the situation. That the experience is not physically or mentally taxing.</li><li>Flow is what researchers call an autotelic experience. Autotelic experiences are things that are worth doing in and of themselves. Researchers sometimes call these intrinsically rewarding experiences. </li></ul>

What it is like to be in flow?

For one thing, the experience can help people pursue their long-term goals. This is because research shows that taking a break to do something fun can help enhance one’s self-control, goal pursuit, and well-being.A recent study also shows that flow helps people stay resilient in the face of adversity. Part of this is because flow can help refocus thoughts away from something stressful to something enjoyable. In fact, studies have shown that experiencing flow can help guard against depression and burnout.

Why is it good to feel flow?

Research shows that people with more flow in their lives had a higher sense of well-being during the COVID-19 pandemic. Scientists are beginning to explore what happens in the brain during flow.

The state of flow

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