flow and creativity mihaly csikszentmihalyi

See another talk on “flow” and happiness above, from a 2014 “ Happiness & its Causes” conference in Sydney, Australia. As Csikszentmihalyi strongly suggests in his books and talks, the more we can lose ourselves intensely in creative activities that bring us fulfillment, the closer we come to being in harmony with ourselves and our world. Indeed, like the Buddhist conception, which contrasts ekaggata with a restless greed that can never be satisfied, Csikszentmihalyi contrasts “flow” with wealth, and cites research suggesting that above a certain level of basic material well-being (which far too many people do not yet have), “increases in material resources do not increase happiness.” Csikszentmihalyi partly reached his conclusions by studying the emotional states of artists, musicians, scientists, and other creative individuals, who all reported experiencing pure states of contentment and joy when so fully concentrated on their work that they forgot themselves-or, more accurately, the constellation of daily anxieties, regrets, worries, fantasies, and preoccupations that we tend to call the self. The mind is completely unified and ‘one with the experience.’” What Csikszentmihalyi calls “flow” is a meditative state we might compare to the ancient Buddhist state of ekaggata-or “one-pointed concentration”-a state meditation teacher Shaila Catherine describes as “certainty, deep stability, and clarity…. What does this mean? Youtuber Fight Mediocrity‘s short book video book review above-which also teaches us how to pronounce Csikszentmihalyi’s name-explains the concept in brief, noting the book’s references to Stoic philosophers Epictetus and Marcus Aurelius and psychologist and Holocaust survivor Viktor Frankl to point out that the idea isn’t new but has been around for centuries: The idea being, as Csikszentmihalyi says in his TED talk, that we naturally experience the greatest happiness when fully absorbed in work we find meaningful and fulfilling.

“Flow” is the shorthand word he uses to refer to the thesis of his book of the same name: “A person can himself be happy, or miserable, regardless of what is actually happening ‘outside,’ just by changing the contents of consciousness.” After chancing upon a Jungian lecture in Switzerland by a speaker who turned out to actually be Carl Jung, Csikszentmihalyi embarked on a course of study in the field now widely known as “ positive psychology.” He now co-directs the Quality of Life Research Center at Claremont Graduate University and studies “human strengths such as creativity, engagement, intrinsic motivation, and responsibility.” Yes, he may present his ideas in popular self-help books and articles, but this does not make his data or conclusions any less sound than in his academic work.

Flow and creativity mihaly csikszentmihalyi