📖Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience

You can’t reach happiness by focusing on it (p.2)

p.2

Ask yourself whether you are happy and you cease to be so. —J.S. Mill

It’s not an issue that we constantly raise our goals. It becomes a problem only when we are so fixated on goals that we stop deriving pleasure from process. (p.10)

• related to Hedonic Treadmill

Civilization is built on repression of individual desires (Freud’s idea) (p.17)

• Related to Spiral Dynamics Stage Blue

By delaying gratification, we focus on the future and do not enjoy now. (p.16)

Consciousness is conscious events (sensation, feeling, thought, intention) and our ability to control their course (p.26)

• In dreams we are not conscious for we can not control the course

Consciousness is a subjectively experienced reality for nothing exists for us unless we experience it (p.26)

Attention influences self and self directs attention (p.34)

Flow makes self more complex. (p.41–42) There are two aspect to complexity: differentiation and integration.

• differentiation makes you more unique with unique skill set

• unification unites you with others and the world

A person’s financial situation is one of the least important factors for happiness. (p.45)

Merging of action and awareness

• All your skills are involved in the action, so no energy left to wander or notice anything else (p.53–54)

Clear goal and feedback

• Unless a person learns to set goals and recognize feedback, they will not enjoy activity (p.55)

  • Dreyfus proficient level

Concentration on the task

• cuts out the rest of the world

Flow experiences can become addictive to the point that people escape the real life (p.61–62)

Flow activities—some activities are designed to induce Flow stat. Examples are music, hobbies, games of varying kind, art, sport.

Schizophrenics “overinclude” signals. They are unable to filter out and control their attention (p.84)

p.93

Gradually I learned to be indifferent to myself and my deficiencies; I came to centre my attention increasingly upon external objects: the state of the world, various branches of knowledge, individuals for whom I felt affection. —Bertrand Russel

Even walking can induce flow if additional goals are set. e.g. take shorter route move as much in shadow as possible (in summer) (p.97-98)

People seem to enjoy more when activities do not involve anything expensive. the best activities cost nothing (speaking with people) (p.99)

Yoga can be seen as designed activity to induce flow (pp.103-106)

p.119 the natural state of consciousness is entropy

• TV helps organize attention at low cost

memory as flow activity

p.126 philosophy and science were invented because they are enjoyable

p.143 it seems that early hunter-gatherers spent 3–5 hours “working” → Hunter-gatherers spent 3–5 hours working

p.143 “Work gives man nobility, and turns him into an animal”

p.145 There is ample evidence that work can be enjoyable. And it is often the most enjoyable part of life → Work can be enjoyable