Focus and Flow

Books Referenced in this Article:

Indistractable: How to Control your Attention and Choose your Life - Nir Eyal

Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience - Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi

The Rise of Superman - Steven Kotler

“You don’t lack time. You lack focus.”

This is a common line I hear in productivity circles.

We can argue about how applicable this is to you, or not…

How you really are so busy.

You really have no time.

But let me tell you this: I have worked with a number of high performers, all of them with booked calendars. Not one of them complains saying “I don’t have enough time.”

On the other hand, the folks I have spoken with who complain about not having enough time all have one thing in common: a favorite TV show.

Each one of these complainers has a TV show they make time to watch, and still complain about not having enough time to exercise.

I am not judging here. I have been in this boat too (and was very busy when Game of Thrones was going on).

I am just pointing out the obvious lack of alignment between what we say we want (more time) and our decisions (watch TV).

It is like Gandalf said, “All we have is to choose what to do with the time given to us.”

We don’t need more time. we need more focus.

Why is focus so hard?

I swear I have undiagnosed ADHD (this brief tangent may be evidence of this)

After reading about the symptoms I thought, “Wait… there are people who DON’T experience this?”

But even if my mind is more easily distractable, ALL minds are distractable. The reason boils down to our brains, threats, and opportunities.

As we walk through the world, our minds are always scanning the background and looking for threats and opportunities, things we can eat and things that can eat us.

We have a stress response to help us avoid pain, and a reward center to get us to seek pleasure.

These systems do not turn off.

When our brain recognizes a threat or an opportunity, one of these systems kicks in (reward or stress) to pull that stimuli into focus and get us to act.

If we walk down the street and see a vicious dog sprinting at us, our stress response will immediately kick in. Epinephrine is released, the HPA axis is triggered (which is the start of cortisol release) and we are ready to take action.

We are focused on the dog in that moment. We are focused on fighting or fleeing.

On the other hand, if you are at a carnival and walk by a vendor selling cotton candy or elephant ears, that smell is enough to fire up your reward center. Dopamine levels increase and you start to feel the sensation of “I gotta have it. I’m going to get it!”

In that moment we are focused on getting that sweet treat. We are focused on getting that reward.

But wait… didn’t I just say that focus was a challenge?

Well, we can focus when we need to, when life or death is on the line.

But our environment is full of little threats and little promises of reward.

So many things are saying “pay attention to me! No, Me! No wait… ME!”

The problem is distraction.

How to be Indistractable

In the book Indistractable, Nir Eyal provides guidance on how to live without distraction. Two of my favorite methods in his book include mastering external triggers and making time for traction.

Mastering External Triggers: Eyal discusses the role of external triggers, such as notifications, emails, and social media, in causing distraction. He provides strategies for managing these triggers, including removing them from your environment, setting boundaries, and using technology responsibly.

We have heard this a number of times. Productivity experts are always telling us to silence notifications, put your phone away, close your email, yada yada yada…

But guess what.. they work.

Making Time for Traction: Eyal also emphasizes the importance of scheduling time for activities that are important to you, such as work, relationships, and self-care. He introduces the concept of timeboxing, where you allocate specific time blocks for different tasks and stick to them rigorously.

Timeboxing is another tried and true method for staying on track and I love that he reiterates it in his book.

Both of these tricks require two things: Intention and planning.

If you wander into a task just hoping to focus, you are going to fail.

You must first INTEND to focus and then PLAN to leverage your time and environment accordingly. Your efforts must be intentional.

How to focus

Let’s just get down to brass tax.

If you want to get better at focus, then use these steps

• Set a goal - Prepare for your task by first identifying what a win looks like. What exactly are you trying to achieve? When you go in with a target, it is easier to aim.
• Block time - If you don’t block time you may fall victim to the worst productivity method of all time: multitasking. Multitasking is the fastest way to suck at multiple things at once.
• Fuel up - Your body and brain need energy to focus. Be sure you are fueled and ready. Don’t overeat or you will end up in a food coma. The only thing you will be focused on is where to take a nap.
• Prepare your workspace - Remove as many distractions as you can. Put your phone away. Silence notifications. Put a Do-Not-Disturb sign up.
• Set an intention - release your thoughts of the previous task. Give yourself permission to lean into the task in front of you.
• Crush it - Then dive in and get some.

If you do it right, you will be primed and ready for focus.

At this time, you are also probably close to initiating a flow state. There are just a couple more variables we need to consider to get you into flow.

The Flow State

What they heck is a flow state?

Have you ever seen one of those kung fu movies where the master is surrounded by 100 ninjas? The pressure is on. But he is a badass. So he closes his eyes, takes a deep breath, and proceeds to demolish every last one of them. THAT is flow.

Flow is the state of being in the zone. We lose track of time and get lost in our task. We might be producing work, being creative, or solving problems. We could be playing a sport, or doing something we love.

Flow was first described (or at least popularized) by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi (pronounced Mee-High Chick-Sent-Mee-High) in his book of the same name.

A flow state is triggered when we are executing a task where we have high skill AND there is high challenge.

When there is pressure to perform and we are good at something, we can reach a flow state.

If the pressure is too high and our skills are low, we get anxious and stressed.

If the pressure is low and our skills are high, we get bored.

But there is a goldilocks zone of pressure and skill where flow can thrive.

Triggering a Flow State

Csikszentmhalyi described four stages of flow. These stages have also been written about by Steven Kotler in his book The Rise of Superman.

Struggle

Release

Flow

Control:

Let’s pair these stages with our previous preparation for focus.

You have set your intention, silenced your phone, and are ready for action. Then you take action and dive into the first stage: Struggle.

During this stage, you may feel a sense of struggle or frustration as you grapple with the task at hand. You are identifying patterns, working through challenges, and are consciously navigating the stress involved.

But as time goes on, you relax. You may take a quick break or do something simple as a mental reprieve. You let go. This is the second stage of Release. You enter a state of focused concentration, feeling more at ease and fully engaged in the activity.

As You pass through the 2nd stage, you enter the 3rd stage: Flow. The flow stage is characterized by complete absorption and immersion in the task. Time seems to pass quickly, and you experience a heightened sense of focus, clarity, and enjoyment. you feel in control of your actions and experience a sense of effortless performance.

After the Flow stage, you enter the stage of control (also known as Recovery). In the final stage, you experience a sense of mastery and satisfaction from successfully completing the task. You feel a sense of accomplishment and fulfillment, along with a desire to continue challenging yourself and seeking out new experiences.

The flow state is not reserved for professional athletes or musicians.

It is within all of us waiting to be triggered.

You can trigger flow.

The Wrap Up

Focus is a skill and you can get good at it.

You can also trigger a flow state to enable you to do more and be more productive with a given task.

• Set a goal
• Block time
• Fuel up
• Prepare your workspace
• Set an intention
• Dive in
• Work past the struggle phase
• Take a quick break for “release”
• Re-enter in the flow state
• And crush it

Your mind is a powerful thing. I believe that you can create focus and flow in your routines.

Get out there and get some.

I’m rooting for you.

Clark