During my student days, one morning, when clearing up my hostel almirah, I found a copy of Michael Crichton’s book ‘Congo.’
I casually opened the book to see what it was about and when I closed it, I had finished the book. About 8 hrs had gone by, I had missed my lunch, and I hadn’t moved from my place for those 8 hrs.
This is the typical flow experience – a psychological state where you get so absorbed in a task that you lose track of time.
If we want to build a joyful, satisfying life, try to regularly inculcate flow.
Whenever you are doing a task, if it is too easy, you will get bored and distracted. If it is too hard, it will make you anxious. But at the right difficulty level, when your skill level matches the challenge, you can get into the flow state.
Also, if you check your phone every few minutes or it keeps buzzing with notifications, flow is not likely to happen.
Incidentally, I have been reading about well-being and happiness and here is what I found interesting – things that make you happy, don’t need money. And things that money can buy, don’t affect happiness.
And yet, we postpone happiness to when we will be rich 🙂
– Rajan