Sure, in [sport] psychology we define flow as the above, but there's a certain spinning-of-the-wheels that goes on for me in certain contexts. Maybe we'll call it 'intellectual flow,' or something hopefully a little catchier. I blog once a month now, if I'm lucky. Which means that each blog post is rarer, holds more value, and is much more of a treat than blog posts of years and months past. When I get a spark to blog, I better, because I know it's something good.
Enter intellectual flow. Three minutes ago, I was reading a book about mindfulness and a section on flow. I wanted to blog. I had no idea what exact words I wanted to use in said blog post, but I know that I wanted to blog. Enter flow. Because it's a challenge to blog now, and I've built up enough of a skill set to be able to do so over the four-and-a-half years I've been doing this. It feels good to have the wheels turning again, to let words pour out onto the page without any hesitation.
Compare flow to being lost in something, and compare being lost in something to when you truly find yourself in it, and that continuous line of cliché. I'm willing to take it as far as being so completely immersed in what you're doing that it's almost as if nothing else is happening. Maybe it's playing your sport. Maybe it's working through a complex homework problem or deciphering a literary study. Maybe it's playing whatever instrument you play to your favorite song. Whatever it is, there's something that allows you to be completely in the zone. Find it.
