Flow, Flow, Flow Your Boat…
TL;DR
The industry is shutting down for the holidays soon. That means it's crickets in your inbox as the end of the year approaches.
Instead of letting apathy or despair take over, spend this valuable downtime figuring out what helps bring you closer to your creative flow.
Artists and creatives know the flow state better than anybody; that moment where it just clicks in.
You’re totally in your zone, challenged (but excited about it!), know exactly how you want to maneuver from one moment to the next, and it feels like you’re right where you’re supposed to be, doing the thing you’re meant to do.
This is one of the primary topics I work on with my clients in the coaching room — how to create more of a flow state, especially when you are in between jobs. You are freelancers, after all.
I can’t talk about this topic without referencing the actual book FLOW by Mihaly Cziskszentmihalyi. He describes the "flow state" as a period when your challenges are higher than average and your skills are equally higher than average.
Mihaly also tells us that apathy is the exact opposite of flow — when you’re bored/unchallenged and not putting your skills to work.
If you are reading this and feeling worse because you aren’t experiencing this desired flow state in your career right now, and you’re finding yourself closer to the apathy zone, you are not alone. It is, however, all too easy to start making up stories about why you are out of flow and how it’s out of your control to get back to flow without some gatekeeper giving you that next opportunity.
I beg to differ.
As you move through these last weeks of the year and it’s crickets in your inbox because the industry is shutting down for the holidays, instead of giving in to apathy, I challenge you to spend this valuable downtime figuring out what helps bring you closer to your creative flow.
If you’re a comedian whose flow includes performing, partner up with your best comedian pal and set up your weekly writing accountability session. It’s not the same as performing for a live audience — but it’s closer to flow than watching too much Netflix.
Or if you're a musician with not enough performance dates on your calendar this month, you could use this time to invest in setting up your home studio space and finally figuring out GarageBand.
The point is — don’t let what you CAN’T do right now stop you from finding your flow.
For more on this popular topic, here are 3 great TED talks on Flow that we recommend:
Mihaly Cziskszentmihalyi TED talk - Flow, the secret to happiness
Adam Grant TED talk - How to stop languishing and start finding flow
Diane Allen’s TED talk on how to find Flow and lose yourself in it
Have a great week!
Betsy
PS: Are you a Path alum? Every week in our private online community, Path&Co., alumni of the Path are coming together for accountability and support. If you are living your Path come join us! Email hello@capesco.com for more info.