To enter flow, you need appropriated self-control, environmental conditions, skills, task and rewards. Besides that, you must know what you’re doing, be able to see whether or not you’re doing it well, and be pushing yourself outside of your comfort zone.

The last point is especially important, it's mastery combined with challenge that brings flow. Too much challenge and we get overcome with anxiety. Not enough, and our brain loses focus and looks for other stimuli.

"In the flow-like state, we exercise control over the contents of our consciousness rather than allowing ourselves to be passively determined by external forces."

• The processes, policies, and busy work gets in the way.
• Most jobs don’t have a clear goal.
• Feedback can be inadequate.
• The pace of work has increased, and it’s hard for people to spend time thinking deeply.
• Your skills aren’t well matched to the challenges you are allowed to pursue.
• There’s a lack of control over interruptions or when and how you work.
• The job doesn’t push you out of your comfort zone.

... to push your mind beyond its comfort zone. Flow happens when we get a bit out of our comfort zone. Too much, and you get anxious; Too little and you get bored.

You need to know your physical or emotional limitations and consciously push past them.

Use them to support your body, your emotions, and your intellect.
For this to happen, make sure you:

• sleep well
• eat nutritiously and intentionally
• exercise
• read and find intellectual stimulation
• connect with others
• do things that excite you and give life meaning
• live your values.

It helps you in the process of developing the right mindset of a writer.
Journaling makes you reflect on your life, imagine future possibilities, and you get to play with words because this is also a writing exercise.

When you are experiencing flow, it seems like the task at hand is almost performing itself.

But there's still a sense of personal control over it, and working on it feels very rewarding.

These are tasks that tend to have high consequences (e.g., rock climbing or public speaking), clear feedback, and take place in a varied environment.

1. Intense concentration on the task at hand.
2. A merging of action and awareness - “being and doing become one”.
3. A loss of reflective self-consciousness.
4. A sense of personal control over the situation.
5. A distortion of the perception of time.
6. Autotelic experience: the activity itself is intrinsically rewarding, rather than the expected outcome.

• It’s not easy. Flow is not just a state where we love the work so much it just pours out. Flow is a state where hard work meets joy and meaning. 
• It’s not for beginners. The act of learning how to do something won’t always allow us to get into the flow. Getting into the zone in a specific discipline is something that needs to be learned and practiced.

Self-Reliance is the topic (and title) of an 1841 essay from US philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson.

He argues strongly that self-reliance, self-trust, and individualism, amongst other things, are ways that we can avoid the conformity imposed upon us.

• Thinking independently: The ability to think autonomously goes hand in hand with trusting your own instinct.
• Embracing your individuality.
• Striving towards your own goals, bravely.

It’s important to remember that self-reliance is not about cutting yourself off from everybody.

• When a person is in a state of flow, all five potent neurochemicals massively amplify the immune system.
• While on flow, stress-causing hormones are flushed out of body, and the autoimmune and nervous systems go haywire.
• A Gallup poll found that most American workers are disengaged and spends less than 5% of their day in flow.

Flow is an optimal state of consciousness, when you feel and perform your best. It’s the moment of total absorption.

Time speeds up or slows down like a freeze-frame effect. Mental and physical ability go through the roof, and the brain takes in more information per second, processing it more deeply.

Unconscious bias refers to unconscious forms of discrimination and stereotyping. Unconscious bias often leads to discrimination, be it deliberate or unintentional.

Unconscious bias is different from cognitive biases. Cognitive biases relate to our brains' particular wiring, while unconscious bias refers to perceptions between different groups and are specific to different societies.

• Recognise that the unconscious bias is a systemic issue. Internal cultures need to be checked and addressed first.
• There is no shame or guilt in unconscious bias. Unconscious bias stems from our tendency to categorise people into social groups and often doesn't match our conscious values.
• It takes a series of conversations and interventions to prevent and protect against unconscious bias.

• Road Running: running on paved roads, paths, and sidewalks.
• Treadmill Running: easier than outdoor running and can be gentler on your joints.
• Racing. Road races can vary from 5Ks to half or full marathons or even ultramarathons. 
• Trail Running: it takes place on hiking trails, from deserts to mountains.
• Track Running. Track events include shorter distance races from the 50-yard dash to 400-meter sprints. 

• Invest in Shoes and Gear. Visit a specialty running store to get fitted for the best shoes for you and check out gear such as running shorts, tops, or tights made of wicking fibers.
• Stay Safe. Do a warmup before you start, like a walk or an easy jog for 5 min.
• Follow running safety advice, such as going against traffic when running on roads. Always carry some form of identification with you.
• Use the Run/Walk Method. Start with running for one minute, then walk for one minute. Try to increase the running intervals over time.
• Make It Manageable. Keep a conversational pace during each workout. If you can't speak in a full sentence, slow down. Breathe through your nose to get enough oxygen.

Once you realize that happiness is predominantly an internal process, you will gradually understand that happiness is also a choice, and you will be able to transcend the limits of what it is that makes you happy.