Flow State

A state of complete absorption in a challenging, meaningful task where time distorts, performance peaks, and effort feels effortless. Coined by psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi.

People are up to 5× more productive in flow than in a normal working state. Creating the conditions for flow, minimising interruptions, working on challenging meaningful tasks, is a force multiplier.

You turn off all notifications, close Slack, work on something slightly above your current skill level. After 90 minutes, you have done more high-quality work than in the previous 3 hours of distracted working.