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Thursday, 02.09.2012 |
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| Finding Flow |
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Product Details
Notes
CHAPTER 1: THE STRUCTURES OF EVERYDAY LIFE
sleep is roughly one third of our time
typical waking activities include:
1) productive (work, school) = 24-60%
2) maintenance (cleaning, eating, driving) = 20-42%
3) leisure (media, sports, socializing) = 20-43%
CHAPTER 2: THE CONTENT OF EXPERIENCE
roughly one third of people say they are "very happy"
about one in ten say they are "not too happy"
most people mark themselves a little above halfway, as "pretty happy"
extroverts on average tend to be happier than introverts
other factors include health, stable marriage, religion, and self-esteem
people say they do what they do because:
1) they wanted to do it (one third of the time)
2) they had to do it (another third)
3) they had nothing better to do (the remaining third)
generally children feel they have more freedom than adults
men usually feel they have more choice than their wives
and whatever people do at home is more voluntary than at work
people feel best when they do what they want to do
but they don't feel the worst when they do something they have to do
they feel worst when they do something because there is nothing better to do
self-esteem depends on the ratio of expectation to successes (William James)
low self-esteem can come from goals set too high, leading to too few successes
it's not true that the person who achieves the most has the highest self-esteem
Asian American students have lower self-esteem because they have high goals
most of the time, there are many conflicting thoughts in our minds
occasionally, we have "flow experiences"
this is when what we feel, what we want, and what we think are in harmony
"flow activities" usually involve clear goals with an understood direction
they also usually provide immediate feedback of some sort
you can tell whether you've improved your position or not
generally your skills are being fully utilized in a manageable challenge
if the challenge is too high, you may get frustrated, worried, or anxious
if the challenge is too low, you get relaxed, then eventually bored
if you feel like your skills are low, you may become apathetic
with high skills and high challenge, you become completely focused
there is no space in consciousness for distracting thoughts or feelings
the sense of time is distorted, it passes quickly without notice
happiness on its own often depends on external circumstances
but the real goal should be flow, because then you are happy afterwards
flow also leads to personal growth
if you feel overwhelmed, you should learn new skills or improve your skills
if you feel bored, you need to find a bigger challenge or set higher goals
in the ideal situation, you are constantly growing while enjoying yourself
about 20% of people report achieving flow often, up to several times a day
about 15% say that they never achieve the flow state
flow generally occurs when you are doing your favorite activity
it can also happen when driving, talking to friends, and at work
it rarely happens in passive leisure activities, like watching TV
flow comes from clear goals, good feedback, and balanced skill and challenge
CHAPTER 3: HOW WE FEEL WHEN DOING DIFFERENT THINGS
a graph of happiness throughout the day has peaks during mealtimes
however, mental concentration is low during eating, and flow is rare
we only spend about 5% of our time eating, too much would reduce happiness
in general, lots of things increase happiness for short periods of time
at work, happiness and motivation are low, but concentration is high
to make work a positive experience, look for flow activities
active leisure is better than passive leisure, which requires no concentration
most people aren't really conscious of which activities are causing stress
once you measure your positive experiences, you can have more of them
keeping a random diary throughout the day can help pinpoint activities
creative people are better at ordering their lives to achieve flow
psychological states are most evident when people are alone
being in the company of others often hides pathological states
people with 5 or more close friends are 60% more likely to be "very happy"
change environment, location, companions and activities to find what works
physical pain is often lower when people are active, even with work
this may be because we notice it more if we aren't busy concentrating
CHAPTER 4: THE PARADOX OF WORK
work generally takes up a third of the time of living
84% of men and 77% of women would still work if they won lots of money
at the same time, most people say they would rather not be working
Aristotle considered idleness a virtue, the only way to find happiness
but there wasn't any meaningful work at that time other than slave labor
Karl Marx later endorsed the work ethic, work had more creative options then
American teenagers now expect to have successful jobs
their expectations are much higher than the actual statistics
15% expect to be doctors or lawyers, that's 15x higher than the true proportion
affluent teens actually work more often in high school than poorer students
exposure to productive tasks is key to a child's growth and expectations
children learn that work is necessary but unpleasant, play is fun but useless
the worst feeling is when it's not work or play, neither important nor enjoyable
without a job, self-discipline is the key to focusing the mind for meaning
flow is found more often at work than during free time, because of clear goals
free time does not guarantee happiness, you have to learn how to use it
small amounts of free time can bring more happiness than too much free time
successful people say they work every minute, but also they never work
the key is blending work and leisure in a way that achieves flow
most creative people say their families are more important than their work
at the same time, their actions show that they spend lots of time working
but they also have stable, emotionally rewarding marriages
CHAPTER 5: THE RISKS AND OPPORTUNITIES OF LEISURE
most people think free time will automatically lead to happiness with no effort
but free time is actually more difficult to enjoy than work
holidays and vacation time often have higher reports of depression and anxiety
retirement can also cause problems for people who identify with their jobs
even physical illness increases when people are alone and have nothing to do
active leisure produces flow, but it often needs a startup time to begin
this initial "activation energy" can deter people from engaging in flow activities
so most people spend more time in passive leisure instead of active
active leisure that provides more chances for flow also has chance of anxiety
passive leisure is better for relaxation but can also produce apathy
reading books and watching less TV generally increases flow
pursuing flow in leisure can be done with a small amount of money
some high paid professionals will find part time jobs to engage in more leisure
the best use of free time requires creativity and conscious effort
about 7% of non-renewable energy is used for leisure (electricity, gas, paper)
the amount of happiness has no relation to the material energy consumed
CHAPTER 6: RELATIONSHIPS AND THE QUALITY OF LIFE
interactions with other people create the best and worst moods in life
a good relationship has two things:
1) compatible and shared goals between both people
2) a willingness to invest attention in the other person's goals
lack of true friends is often a complaint of people during a midlife crisis
friendship is often found in the modern family, between spouses or children
there are more arguments in families that are emotionally close
extroverted people are happier, more serene, and less stressed than introverts
however extroverts may just report happier feelings, since they are optimistic
the best creative individuals balance both extroversion and introversion
CHAPTER 7: CHANGING PATTERNS OF LIFE
about 15% of the population never experience flow
some people enjoy anything they do, even work, as long as they don't waste time
improve the quality of life by investing more energy into flow activities
there are three main reasons why jobs may be resented:
1) the job is harmful or pointless, like the tobacco industry
2) the work is boring and routine, with no variety or challenge, like a factory
3) the job is too stressful, like when there is conflict with a boss
concerns for money and security are actually less than the above three
most people won't admit it, but we can choose to overcome these obstacles
one way is to think about improving the whole industry, not just your niche job
someone in a low level job can be happy and make customers happy too
a motivated employee can notice important things within a mundane routine
reduce stress by prioritizing, delegating tasks, and making systematic plans
creative individuals design their own job and invent career paths for others
finding flow at home with family requires as much energy as at work
sharing goals is key, serve your own interests by helping others achieve theirs
CHAPTER 8: THE AUTOTELIC PERSONALITY
an autotelic activity is done for its own sake because we enjoy the experience
exotelic means doing an activity for some external reason, like money or fame
autotelic people feel that almost anything they do is important and valuable
they don't need material possessions or passive entertainment
they find flow in work, at home, with family, friends, and even alone
everything they do feels rewarding because they have internal motivation
autotelic teens study more, engage in more active leisure, and watch less TV
autotelic teens aren't necessarily happier, but they have higher self-esteem
they also have higher concentration and enjoyment levels
and they believe that what they are doing is important to their future
in general, self-reported happiness is not a good measure of quality of life
some people will say they are happy even when they report lots of problems
the goal here is to be happy while doing things that improve our skills
autotelic people pay more attention, they notice more and are more interested
even routine tasks are approached with more care to make them a work of art
time stress is a common complaint, but many things we do are not necessary
it's important to focus at will, rather than responding to external stimulus
many things become interesting if you pay more attention to them
physical pain and monetary loss are only as big as the focus we place on them
look suffering straight in the eye, acknowledge it, then focus on what we want
use active leisure not for some result, but to practice controlling your focus
CHAPTER 9: THE LOVE OF FATE
each person's life affects the universe in a multitude of small ways
individualism in children needs to be balanced by working for a common good
people have more trouble forming commitments because of individualism
half the urban population in developed countries are spending their lives alone
Buddhism: Act as if the future of the Universe depends on what you do,
while laughing at yourself for thinking that what you do makes any difference.
the biggest obstacle to a good life is yourself, your ego and motivations
use self-knowledge, ambition and even aggressiveness in constructive ways
when most people think about themselves, their moods become negative
there is a skill to self-reflection, otherwise you tend to think about problems
practice thinking about yourself when you are in a good mood instead of bad
clear goals help make the experience more directed and enjoyable
it's not just achieving the result, but experiencing flow in the process
take ownership of your actions, rather than feeling like your strings are pulled
if you have to do something, come up with a motivating goal and pursue it |
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