For as long as I can remember, my default mode of functioning seems to primarily come from a state of arousal and anxiety. My set point towards an experience of flow seems to have to filter through these more uncomfortable states of being.
I used to despise this. I would wish I didn’t have to experience the discomfort of feeling like I'm sick, or the racing doubts in my mind. Heading into a performance such as a football match, or speaking in public would undoubtedly raise my heart rate and I would find myself filled with anxiety.
It always seemed like other people came into it from a more relaxed and in-control state. Take my friend, Eric.
No matter what activity he finds himself in — be it football, golf, table tennis, or billiards — he always does well. He is a natural. Anxiety didn’t seem to be in his vocabulary. I asked Eric if he feels nervous before our men’s league soccer games and what he would rate his arousal heading into it. He said around 2 or 3. I often find myself at around 6/10.
We all experience life and performance quite differently. Eric tends to default from a place of relaxation and control when it comes to the challenge-skills balance within the 8-channel model of flow (this is probably why he’s a lawyer!):
8-channel model of flow. From Susan A. Jackson (2024). Experiencing Flow: Life Beyond Boredom and Anxiety | Originally adapted from: Massimini, F., & Carli, M. (1988). The systematic assessment of flow in daily experience. In M. Csikszentmihalyi & I. S. Csikszentmihalyi (Eds.), Optimal experience: Psychological studies of flow in consciousness (pp. 266–287). Cambridge University Press.
Of course, there are times when he might be in a different state. He even admits to feeling incredible anxiety earlier in his footy career. But he has definitely harnessed a skillset to generally meet challenges with more ease than most.
Everyone has varying degrees of perceived challenge and skills in any given activity. I believe that we also tend to internally default from a certain set point, either from the left (anxiety) or right (control) of flow. There is no right or wrong way. Flow can occur from either, though they require adjusted mechanisms (decrease or increase challenge).
Flow is that incredible intersection of attention and awareness — those effortless moments of rapt concentration when our skills are matched with the demands (challenge) of a given activity. We are fully attentive to what we are doing, it feels effortless, and it's a highly enjoyable experience. I wrote a book on the topic, which you can check out here.
Though I would prefer not to have my default state be anxiety, I have since learned to become more comfortable with being uncomfortable. I now realize that it is sometimes necessary to go through uneasiness in order to reach higher levels of performance. This is just my way of getting into flow.
I have learned to reframe my anxiety into its twin: arousal.
For those of us who are all too familiar with the anxiety dimension, flow is still possible. Sometimes all it takes is to reframe (change the way you look at) the feeling of anxiety by seeing it as arousal: “I feel activated” as opposed to “I am so anxious.”
The former response creates a sense of more spaciousness and a certain readiness to perform. Just by doing this simple cognitive reframe, we immediately reduce the perceived challenge of the situation or activity. It no longer feels like a threat.
So now whenever I feel the jitteriness and increased heart rate heading into a public speaking engagement, for example, I see it as my body preparing me for a performance. I have also developed competence over time, and this is precisely where the opportunity for enhanced performance occurs: the intersection of high challenge (framed as facilitative) with the increased skill set trained over time.
For those of us who are all too familiar with the anxiety dimension, flow is still possible. Sometimes all it takes is to reframe (change the way you look at) the feeling of anxiety by seeing it as arousal: “I feel activated” as opposed to “I am so anxious.”
Not all activities trigger anxiety or arousal for me. It highly depends on a variety of factors such as how much I identify or place importance on an activity, or if there is an audience. Lately, I try to come into flow from a wider range of activities outside of sport such as through coaching others, cooking, writing, or even doing yard work.
Some of the activities I do and where I typically appraoch them from.
There are some things that initially started off in anxiety for me, but I have since learned to reframe as arousal. This is my set point to launch into flow by reducing the perceived challenge of the situation through self-talk (reframing) and physiological relaxation (deep breathing). Furthermore, by doing these things over time, I build up my perceived skill in meeting the demands of the challenge.
Other activities are not as arousal-inducing for me, so I approach them in another way — by increasing perceived challenge through (1) creating a clear objective, (2) incorporating feedback, and (3) training my focus through mindfulness. These are all known ingredients to experience flow.
So where do you fit in all of this?
The updated 8-channel flow model shown above seems to look at things multi-dimensionally and can be very useful in creating a better understanding of the challenge-skills balance. In this view, everyone starts with a particular set point, or baseline, of where they tend to lie. For example, you can look at this like a 5/10 for both challenge and skills. Reflect on which activities tend to alter this number for you. What activities bring up the challenge or demands on your skills? It might be helpful for you to list various activities that you do throughout the day or life in general.
If you had to put these activities in a particular channel in the model above, which activities would you put in each? Which is your primary set point?
Do you start left, and then go right (anxiety arousal → flow), or are you usually more relaxed and in control and use that as a launch pad for flow? How can you incorporate more mental skills (e.g., perspective-taking, reframing, arousal management, focus) to handle it either way?
Finally, reflect on which of these activities you would like to do more of to experience flow. Play around with committing to a few for a little while to develop a deeper skill set and increase challenge. It could be a gateway to some enjoyable experiences.
P.S
Eric and I recently had to learn a dance as groomsmen for our mutual friend, in front of a lot of guests. Before we got on stage we joked around what the best number would be in terms of activation. We both settled on a 6/10 and crushed it (so we think).
PPS.
Definitely check out Dr. Susan Jackson’s new book: Experiencing Flow: Life Beyond Boredom and Anxiety for a more comprehensive deep dive into the 8-channel model of flow, and just flow in general.
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