Why Entering Flow State Feels Impossible

Summary

The video script explores the concept of the 'flow state,' a mental state associated with optimal productivity and focus. It clarifies that entering flow is not an action but a state that occurs naturally under certain conditions. The speaker explains that achieving flow requires a balance of 'eustress' (positive stress), an absence of ego, and the ability to sustain concentration. Techniques such as changing the task's frame to increase challenge or using meditation practices like fixed-point gazing are suggested to enhance focus and facilitate the flow state. The script also draws parallels between the elusive nature of flow and the process of falling asleep, emphasizing the importance of practice and the right mental conditions for achieving this highly productive state.

Takeaways

• 🧘 Entering the flow state is not an action but a state of mind that happens to you, similar to sleep, which is also not something you can force.
• 📚 The flow state is often discussed in productivity circles but rarely with practical steps to achieve it consistently.
• 🔄 To enter a flow state, one needs to experience a state of 'eustress' or good stress, avoiding both boredom and being overwhelmed.
• 🧠 The reticular activating formation (RAF) in the brain, sensitive to cortisol, plays a key role in maintaining focus and alertness for flow.
• 🛑 Changing the frame of a task or increasing its difficulty can help combat boredom and engage the RAF, facilitating flow.
• 🤯 When feeling overwhelmed, it's important to metabolize the emotion causing the stress, with breathing techniques being a quick way to do so.
• 🎯 A lack of ego is crucial for entering the flow state; comparative thoughts and judgments hinder the dissolution of self needed for flow.
• 🌀 The flow state involves synchronicity of brain activity, where all parts of the brain are uniformly active, not just one or a few.
• 🕴 The yogic concept of 'Darshan' involves the dissolution of the observer and the observed, merging the self with the task at hand.
• 🤔 Formal meditation practices, such as fixed-point gazing, can strengthen the ability to focus and prepare the mind for the flow state.
• 💡 Consistently entering the flow state requires practice, specifically in maintaining focus and managing the right level of stress without ego involvement.

Q & A

What is the main argument presented in the video script about the flow state?

The main argument is that entering the flow state is technically impossible as it is a state of mind that happens to you, not an action you can perform. However, there are methods to facilitate entering the flow state.

Why is the flow state often misunderstood as something that can be 'done'?

The flow state is often misunderstood as an action because of the way it is discussed in productivity circles and media, but it is actually a state of mind that occurs naturally under certain conditions.

What is the relationship between stress and the flow state as described in the script?

The flow state requires a state of 'eustress,' which is a healthy amount of stress that keeps the mind engaged and focused without inducing boredom or distress.

How does the reticular activating formation (RAF) play a role in achieving the flow state?

The RAF is sensitive to cortisol, a stress hormone, and requires a certain level of it to activate and maintain focus, which is necessary for entering the flow state.

What can one do if they are bored with a task to increase the likelihood of entering the flow state?

To combat boredom, one can change the frame of the task to make it more challenging, thereby increasing cortisol levels and engaging the RAF.

How can emotional overwhelm interfere with entering the flow state?

Emotional overwhelm can lead to a wandering mind, causing one to focus on thoughts other than the task at hand, which is counterproductive to achieving the flow state.

What is a simple technique mentioned in the script to metabolize emotions and reduce stress?

One simple technique is to focus on long, deep exhalations during breathing, which can help calm emotions and reduce stress.

What is the significance of the absence of ego in achieving the flow state?

The absence of ego is crucial because the flow state involves the dissolution of the self and merging with the task at hand, which cannot occur if the ego is active.

Why is sustained attention or concentration important for entering the flow state?

Sustained attention is important because the longer one can focus on a task, the higher the probability of entering the flow state at any given moment.

What meditation technique is recommended in the script to improve focus for the flow state?

Fixed Point gazing, such as candle gazing, is recommended as a meditation technique to strengthen the capacity for sustained attention.

How does the script relate the flow state to the experiences of yogis and their spiritual practices?

The script relates the flow state to yogic practices by explaining that yogis discovered how to enter the flow state as a step towards achieving higher spiritual experiences like samadhi.

Outlines

00:00

🧠 Understanding the Flow State

The first paragraph introduces the concept of the flow state, emphasizing that it is a state of mind rather than an action. It highlights the difficulty in consistently entering this state, drawing parallels with the challenge of falling asleep. The speaker explains that the flow state is not something you can force but can be facilitated by certain conditions. The key takeaway is that achieving flow requires a balance of stress, where neither boredom nor overwhelm can exist. The reticular activating formation (RAF) in the brain, sensitive to cortisol, plays a crucial role in this process. Strategies to engage the RAF include changing the frame of a task to increase challenge or complexity.

05:00

🌱 Managing Stress for Flow

In the second paragraph, the focus shifts to managing stress to achieve the flow state. The speaker discusses the importance of 'eustress' – positive stress – in maintaining focus and engagement. Techniques to manage stress include changing the perception of a task to make it more challenging or using emotional regulation methods like deep breathing to reduce overwhelming feelings. The speaker also touches on the psychological aspects of being overwhelmed and how emotions can be managed to facilitate a state of flow. The emphasis is on the balance between the task's difficulty and the individual's emotional state.

10:01

🚫 Ego and the Barrier to Flow

The third paragraph delves into the role of ego in achieving the flow state. It explains that the ego can be a barrier to entering flow, as it involves a sense of self that distracts from the task at hand. The speaker suggests that thoughts of comparison, which are rooted in ego, prevent one from fully immersing in the flow state. Techniques to overcome ego include meditation practices that help dissolve the sense of self and merge with the task. The importance of sustained focus and concentration is also highlighted, with the speaker recommending practices like fixed-point gazing to strengthen the ability to concentrate.

15:02

🌌 Entering the Flow State Consistently

The final paragraph summarizes the key elements needed to consistently enter the flow state. It reiterates the importance of managing stress, maintaining an absence of ego, and developing a strong focus. The speaker uses the analogy of falling asleep to illustrate the need for sustained focus and the likelihood of entering flow. The paragraph concludes by emphasizing the transformative potential of the flow state, as evidenced by the speaker's personal experience in achieving success in medical school through the ability to enter and maintain flow.

Keywords

💡Flow State

The 'Flow State' refers to a mental state of complete immersion and focus on an activity, where one experiences heightened productivity and creativity. It is central to the video's theme as it discusses the impossibility of deliberately entering this state and then provides strategies to facilitate it. The script uses the concept to highlight the contrast between the common advice on achieving flow and the actual practices that can lead to it.

💡Productivity

Productivity is the efficiency of an individual's work or the rate at which tasks are completed. In the context of the video, it is tied to the flow state as a desired outcome. The script mentions 'productivity Chads' and the 'Harvard Business Review' to emphasize the widespread interest in improving productivity through achieving a flow state.

💡UST Stress

UST stress, or 'Useful Stress,' is a term introduced in the script to describe a healthy level of stress that is beneficial for entering the flow state. It is contrasted with 'distress,' which is detrimental. The concept is integral to the video's message, illustrating how a moderate amount of stress can keep one engaged and focused, as opposed to being bored or overwhelmed.

💡Reticular Activating Formation (RAF)

The Reticular Activating Formation is a part of the brain that plays a role in regulating arousal, attention, and alertness. The script explains its sensitivity to cortisol, a stress hormone, and how it is crucial for achieving a flow state. The RAF is used as an example to show how the body's physiological response to stress can either facilitate or hinder the flow state.

💡Ego

In the context of the video, 'Ego' refers to one's sense of self, which can be an obstacle to entering the flow state. The script discusses how the dissolution of the ego is necessary for achieving a state of oneness with the task at hand. It also mentions how thoughts of comparison, rooted in ego, can prevent one from reaching the flow state.

💡Meditation

Meditation is a practice of focusing the mind and achieving a mentally clear and emotionally calm state. The video suggests meditation as a tool for training the mind to focus and for reducing ego-related thoughts. It is used as an example of how to prepare the mind for entering a flow state through practices like fixed-point gazing.

💡Dharana

Dharana is a term from yoga and meditation that refers to the act of concentration or the ability to focus one's mind on a single point. The script uses this term to describe the importance of sustained attention in achieving a flow state. It is presented as a skill that can be developed through meditation practices.

💡Comparison

Comparison, as discussed in the script, is a mental activity that involves evaluating oneself against others. It is highlighted as a thought process that can prevent one from entering the flow state due to its association with the ego. The video uses examples of comparison to illustrate how such thoughts can distract from the task at hand.

💡Breathwork

Breathwork is a practice that involves controlling and manipulating one's breath to induce various psychological and physiological effects. The video script describes it as a powerful tool for metabolizing emotions and reducing stress, which can help in achieving a flow state by calming the mind.

💡Dr. K's Guide

Dr. K's Guide is mentioned in the script as a comprehensive resource for understanding the mind and taking control of one's life. It is used as an example of a tool that can provide further techniques and guidance on entering a flow state and is presented as a product that the speaker has developed based on their experience.

Highlights

Entering the flow state is technically impossible as it is a state of mind rather than an action.

Flow state is often discussed in productivity circles but rarely explained how to achieve it consistently.

Yogis in Ancient India discovered the concept of flow state and its relation to sleep, where it's something that happens to you.

The reticular activating formation (RAF) in the brain is responsible for stress and focus, and is sensitive to cortisol levels.

To enter a flow state, one needs a balance of 'eustress' or good stress to avoid boredom or being overwhelmed.

Changing the frame of a task can increase its challenge and engage the mind, such as limiting units in a game to increase difficulty.

Breathing techniques can be used to metabolize emotions and reduce stress levels, facilitating the flow state.

Journaling and talking to a friend are alternative methods to metabolize emotions and prepare for the flow state.

The absence of ego is crucial for entering the flow state, as the ego involves comparison and judgment.

Fixed point gazing is a meditation technique that strengthens focus and prepares the mind for the flow state.

Dr. K's guide is a resource that provides comprehensive guidance on understanding the mind and controlling life.

The yogis' discovery of the flow state was part of their journey towards higher spiritual experiences like samadhi.

Entering the flow state consistently requires practice and cannot be achieved without effort.

The probability of entering the flow state increases with the duration of sustained focus on a task.

Dr. K used the flow state to study efficiently for Harvard Medical School, outperforming peers who studied longer hours.

Transcripts

technically entering the flow state is

impossible and today we're going to

teach you how to do

it there are a lot of productivity Chads

out there talking about the Flow State

and if you look at stuff like Harvard

Business Review in like Huffington Post

everyone's like oh my God like the Flow

State the Flow State everyone should

enter the Flow State once you get into a

flow State you can do this if you want

to be more productive and have a side

hustle learn how to enter the Flow State

and yet there are very few resources is

that actually tell you how to

consistently enter the Flow State and

the reason for that is because

technically entering the flow state is

impossible and today we're going to

teach you how to do it so let's take a

step back and understand exactly what

the flow state is because that'll tell

us why it's impossible to enter one and

also how to enter one the first thing to

understand is that the flow state is a

state it is not an action it's not a

verb so as human beings we can do things

that are verb BBS I can for example read

a book I can hold up a pen I can smile

and wink these are things that I can do

but the flow state is a state of mind

you cannot do a state of mind a state of

mind is something that happens to you so

this is a really critical discovery that

yogis in Ancient India made a couple

thousand years ago is they sort of

discovered that you can't actually go to

sleep it is technically impossible to go

to sleep what you can do is go to bed

you can lay down and then hopefully if

you're lucky the state of mind that is

sleep will happen to you and this is

something that you may actually be very

very familiar with because if you're

like me there have been times in your

life where you try to go to sleep and

you try really really hard to go to

sleep you get into bed and you're like

oh my God I need to go to sleep I need

to go to sleep oh my God it's so late

I'm going to be so tired tomorrow oh my

God sleep sleep now sleep now dumbass

sleep sleep and then the harder you try

the harder it is to actually attain

sleep and the flow state is exactly the

same way where it's not something that

you can do the good news is that much

like actually falling asleep there are

many things that you can do that will

facilitate the state of flow and yogis

are able to consistently enter a state

of flow or stay in a state of flow for

hours if not decades at a time so let's

understand what's involved the first

thing that you need to enter a flow

state is a state of UST stress so by

stress I mean EU the prefix that is

means good stress so we're all familiar

with distress which is what we sort of

call stress nowadays we refer to it as

distress which is stress that is bad

causes me problems and in order to

attain a flow State we need a healthy

amount of stress so if we're trying to

do a task and the task is too easy what

that does is induce boredom on the other

hand if the task that we're trying to do

is too hard that will induce distress

and will feel overwhelming in both of

these situations it leads to a Wandering

mind so if I'm bored by a particular

task at hand what's going to happen with

my mind I'm going to start thinking

about other things but what about the

case of being overwhelmed so if I'm

overwhelmed about writing this paper

that needs to be written by Monday at

8:00 a.m. then what's going to happen is

in addition to focusing on the paper my

mind is going to be thinking all kinds

of other things like what if I don't

write the paper fast enough what if it's

bad I should have started earlier should

I ask for help should I email an

extension what will the the professor

think if I email them for an extension

will they give it will they not give it

will they think I'm pathetic so if you

think about the the state of mind when

you're overwhelmed you're not just

thinking about the task at hand you're

actually thinking a lot of other

thoughts so instead what we want is a

state of something called UST stress

where our attention is going to be

engaged and focused so if we look at the

part of our brain that governs you

stress it's the this part of our brain

called the reticular activating

formation so the RAF is actually a

primitive circuit kind of in the back of

our brain that sort of governs our

ability to be awake and alert and

focused on a particular thing and it

turns out that the RAF is uniquely

sensitive to cortisol which is a stress

hormone and by uniquely sensitive what I

mean is that you require some of it to

actually activate the RAF but if it's

too much it sort of causes problem in

the RAF and if it's too little the RAF

is kind of like half assing it so we

literally need a decent amount of stress

chemical and so if you're struggling to

activate the RAF you're if you're

struggling to get engaged with a task

there are two things that you can do to

put yourself in the US stress State the

first is that if you're bored what you

can do is change the frame of the task

to make it more challenging so this is

something that like I used to do so I

used to be pretty good at RTS games

and then eventually like when I played

with my friends like I'd always dumpster

them right cuz I'm Dr K right

here son and so what I would start to do

to like make things interesting for

myself and you know this if you're a Pro

Gamer is you'll like start to restrict

internally the limits that the units you

can use right so I I was playing

Starcraft and I would go like all

firebat so I'd like pick some lame

stupid unit that like isn't that good

but I'm going to see if I can challenge

myself and LOL if I can crush them with

only firebats it will make me an even

more epic gamer and this is also

something that I use for people who are

bored by school which is that I'll tell

them okay instead of like trying to

learn the material pretend that you

going to teach the material a week from

now or pretend that you are going to

tutor in the material a year from now

and so by sort of increasing the

difficulty of the task internally it'll

activate more cortisol recruit your RAF

and keep you engaged on the flip side if

the task is overwhelming there are a

couple of things you can do to bring

that stress level down so generally

speaking when we feel overwhelmed we

don't feel overwhelmed because of the

actual tasks at hand the reason we

technically feel overwhelmed is because

of an emotion so if we look at sort of

the sensation of being overwhelmed in

the psychology like the cognition of

being overwhelmed it's actually driven

by emotions because even if you have a

paper do in 48 hours if you can sort of

ground yourself emotionally sort of calm

down and sort of develop a plan of

attack you can sit down and actually

pound that work out so if you're feeling

overwhelmed the primary thing you need

to do is actually metabolize the emotion

there are a couple of simple ways to do

that one really good way to metabolize

emotion or calm down emotion is through

breath so we know for example that

breath has a reciprocal relationship

with emotion so when I start breathing a

particular way or sorry when I start

feeling a particular way I will start

breathing a particular way so if I like

start breathing like

this

what do youall think I'm feeling right

now right and on the flip side I can

start breathing like

this and if you start hyperventilating

hyperventilate with me for a

second you start to feel like really

uncomfortable right you can induce that

discomfort with your breath and the flip

side of it is also true that if you take

a long deep breath and what we really

want to do is focus on Long

exhalations

just stop breathing close your eyes for

a

second if you change your breath the

emotions will change with it so if

you're feeling overwhelmed you can even

see pay attention to my voice right I

can feel myself calming down with a

single breath my voice is changing my

tone is changing and it's literally that

simple the more you practice it the

better you'll be there are other kinds

of emotional metabolism techniques you

can use you can Journal you can write

things out you can talk to to a friend

but literally breath is the most

powerful and sudden thing that you can

use to lower your stress levels and feel

less overwhelmed so now we have the

first of three things that we need to

enter a flow state which is a level of

use stress and so our brain needs a

couple of other things to enter a flow

State what we know about flow States is

that they involve a synchronicity of

activity across the brain so it's not

that one part of your brain is active

and another is inactive it's is actually

that all parts of your brain are kind of

uniformly active so what are the other

things that we need to capitalize on the

second thing that we need to enter a

flow state is a lack of ego so when

yogis were sort of studying the Flow

State they discovered a couple of things

step number one is when I meditate on an

object let's say I'm meditating on a

candle or something like that there's me

in here and there's the candle out there

so what I'm going to do is I am going to

look at the candle and I'm going to

focus the attention of my mind on the

candle and then if I focus the attention

of my mind on the candle long enough

what will actually happen is the eye

will dissolve and if you enter a flow

State you kind of know what I'm talking

about where you sort of lose sight of

yourself as an entity you kind of become

one with the thing that you're doing you

become sort of like an elemental like a

an elemental of the task at hand right

where you're one with writing you're one

with playing the game you may even felt

the sort of the Zone when you're playing

a game where you become sort some sort

of like channeling the Divinity of this

video game where the gods of DOTA League

of Legends or valerant are coming and

inhabiting your body and you are playing

at a level that is beyond what humans

are capable of and this is what happens

in the flow state is that if we

technically look at it the ego actually

dissolves and what the yogi sort of

discovered is that once we focus on

something we enter this second state of

mind which is basically like the Flow

State called called and this is where

the object and the subject become one so

how do we sort of keep our ego from

entering the picture because as long as

the ego is active we will not attain a

flow state so we can look at a couple of

thoughts that result in ego or that come

from ego so one is any thought of

comparison this is rooted in the ego

because I can't make a comparison

without there being an I right if I say

this person is smarter or stupider than

I am I have to have an intell that I'm

kind of aware of so as long as a

comparison is being made all comparisons

require a sense of identity I'm talking

about comparisons between you and other

people they require sense of identity

and as long as you're making a

comparison in your mind you won't enter

the Flow State and that makes perfect

sense right so if I'm like trying to

cram for a paper that's due in 48 hours

if I'm thinking oh my God I wish I was

more disciplined like this other person

oh man I should have started like this

other person why am I like this why

can't I be disciplined like my older

brother like like my older sister who

always gets straight A they're The

Golden Child why am I such a screw up as

long as your mind is making comparative

thoughts you will not enter the Flow

State so this is the one thing that you

should really really steer away from do

not indulge those thoughts at all so if

you're trying to enter a flow State and

your mind is making a comparison or

making a judgment about who you are I'm

so pathetic I'm so this I'm so this

breathe breathe in feel that cold air

come in and let all of those thoughts

literally go out with your breath and

return to the task at hand and now we

come to the third thing that you need to

enter a flow state which is a focus

level of concentration this is actually

the first step that the Yogi's

discovered which is the which is called

Dar so this is the one thing that you

can actually do which is to focus your

attention on a particular task for an

extended period of time so you don't

randomly like slip into the flow state

right so if I'm just like walking down

the street LA la la la I don't like slip

into a flow state of writing my

beautiful amazing fiction novel what you

actually have to do to enter a flow

state is to start the task at hand and

then you require a sustained attention

for that period of time and this is

where I would actually recommend formal

meditation practice to literally level

up the skill of focus so I really like

certain practices like bratara practices

which y all can find in Dr K's guide but

I'll give you all a simple example of

this I really like fixed Point gazing as

the most direct meditation technique

that will prepare you for a flow state

so fixed Point gazing is literally that

hey just a quick note a lot of people

will ask us what do I do next and that's

why we built Dr K's guide It's a

comprehensive resource that distills

over 20 years of my experience both as a

monk and as a psychiatrist and it's

designed in a way that's tailored to fit

your needs so if you're interested in

better on understanding your mind and

taking control of your life check out

the link below so what we're doing is

we're looking at one particular Point

without blinking for as long as we can

now I like this technique for a couple

of reasons the first is that it's hard

and so remember that when we do a

meditation technique that is easy like

observe your breath oh like pay

attention to the breath see all of the

Beauties in the breath oh my God the

beauty the universe the life

everything's in the breath you sit there

and you're like okay I'm

breathing this is boring I'm going to

start thinking about something else so

we need a technique that is challenging

to once again engage that RAF so that

our mind stays focused this is why I

love fixo gazing because what we're

going to do is stare at something for 30

seconds 45 seconds 60 seconds without

blinking and the harder it becomes the

more you kind of engage it and then over

time you will kind of get better at it

and so this will all strengthen your

capacity for darh so what I would sort

of recommend is a a candle gazing

technique this is calleda where you're

basically like with a half LED gaze

looking at a candle for an extended

period of time you can see we we've got

YouTube videos about it you can check

out Dr K's guide if you want more

options and stuff like that they're both

great but basically you should practice

this technique called draa this is the

one thing that unfortunately you're

going to have to practice I'm sorry that

sometimes if you want to learn how to do

stuff like consistently enter the Flow

State you got to actually practice stuff

okay what I've done is I've done my

level best to reduce the amount of

practice that yall need to do so that

you can have a high yield meditation

practice that will engage you and force

your concentration because as you do the

practice your mind will start telling

you hey we need to Blink we need to

Blink we need to Blink and so literally

what you're doing is restraining your

natural impulses and putting all of your

focus into not blinking now I'm not

saying that you should go without

blinking for like 10 minutes at a time

you want to work your way up right so

start it with 15 seconds 20 seconds 30

seconds but when it starts to feel to be

a little bit too much go ahead and blink

and close your eyes even and then let

that sort of relief kind of wash through

you it's going to feel amazing youall

should definitely try it okay and so

kind of coming back to the Flow State

what it turns out is that if you want to

enter a flow State consistently it's not

something that you can do which is

precisely why there's such crappy

guidance about how to consistently enter

the Flow State the good news is that the

yogis BAS basically figured out how to

enter the Flow State on their way to

sort of these psychedelic spiritual

experiences and this is where like the

reason the yogis care about the flow

state is they didn't care about

productivity danana is the flow state is

one of the steps on the way to something

called samadi which are these

psychedelic experiences in meditation

where you feel one with the universe and

you see your past lives and you can

travel through time and like all this

kind of you can feel the Infinity of the

universe and you feel connected with all

the other human beings like this all the

crap that even there you know fmri

studies that show that this stuff does

weird things to your brain and so they

sort of figured out that okay if we want

to have these cool psychedelic

experiences we got to learn how to enter

Deon consistently and what they sort of

discovered is there three things you

need you need some level of you stress

right so your reticular activating

formation is engaged and you're focused

can't be overwhelmed can't be bored

second thing that you need is you need

an absence of ego because literally the

flow state is the dissolution of the

self and the merging of with the task at

hand and the third thing that you need

is you need a mind that is strong enough

to be able to sustain your focus on a

particular task and the reason that's

important is the longer you can stay

focused the greater the probability that

you will enter the Flow State at any one

of those moments and so the other kind

of last analogy that I'll use is if we

sort of think about going to

sleep if I can stay in bed for long

enough eventually I will fall asleep I'm

not going to fall asleep walking around

so if I really want to give myself the

best chance of entering the state of

sleep what I really need to do is try to

stay in bed as long as possible and

that's what Thea does so hopefully with

these three things y'all can

consistently enter the Flow State and

once you're able to do that like trust

me it's awesome like it really makes you

so much more productive it's how my lazy

ass got into Harvard Medical School I

didn't like suddenly become disciplined

what I did is I was able to enter the

Flow State I was able to study for 2

hours a day when all my colleagues were

like friends were studying 10 12 hours a

day and since my state of mind was so op

like everything just kind of sank in and

like I did pretty well in med school so

you all should absolutely do this and

hopefully it'll

[Music]

help