Everyone wants to live a happy life. All other goals we make (for health, beauty, marriage, friendship, recognition, success, money or power) is based on the premise that it will give us happiness. Happiness is the ultimate goal. Yet many people put the other goals above all other and in the end could not find happiness.
When are people most happy ? Happiness is not a result of chance or good fortune. It results from people learning to control their inner experience when confronted by external events. Happiness results when people are in the state of flow. Though we also enjoy the calm and relaxing times, the best moments usually occur when one's mind or body is stretched to its limits in a voluntary effort to accomplish something difficult and worthwhile.
“Flow” is the way people describe their state of mind when consciousness is harmoniously ordered, and they want to pursue whatever they are doing for its
own sake. This state is characterized by the following :
1) Having a clear understanding of what you want to achieve
2) Being able to concentrate for a sustained period of time
3) Losing the feeling of consciousness of one's self including awareness of bodily needs
4) Finding that time passes quickly (it always does when you're having fun
5) Experiencing a balance between your ability level and the challenge at hand
6) Having a sense of personal control over the situation
7) Feeling that the activity is intrinsically rewarding
8) Joy and creativity at their peak
9) Being completely absorbed and totally involved in the activity itself
Flow MODEL
The flow model is shown as a two dimensional graph showing the emotional states between various levels of perceived skill level and challenge. For example, when the perceived challenge is too high compared to how their skill level, the result is worry or anxiety for the individual as he or she may feel not capable of successfully meeting the challenge. Whereas, if a person perceives his skill (knowledge or experience) as much higher than required for a certain challenge, the individual will either feel too relaxed or even bored with the activity.
I still recall an old professor during my college days. He is quite good at the subject matters he is teaching. Some of my classmates say he is very good at teaching and that they are able to learn much better than with the other teachers. However, for some reason some of us just makes one or so stupid mistakes during his test exams. It was really frustrating not getting a perfect score with such simple problems. It got to the point that I make it a point to avoid schedules when he is the subject instructor and chose those with "terror" reputation. Looking back, it was just as if my mind just goes to sleep after perceiving such a low challenge level. It took quite an effort to be able to bypass the apathy and concentrate on the test exam.
With the right challenge suited to your perceived skill level, you experience a state of mind called "Flow". It can be quite fullfilling to feel like doing something "significant".
For those who finds the challenge too high for them, the best way to improve would be :
When are people most happy ? Happiness is not a result of chance or good fortune. It results from people learning to control their inner experience when confronted by external events. Happiness results when people are in the state of flow. Though we also enjoy the calm and relaxing times, the best moments usually occur when one's mind or body is stretched to its limits in a voluntary effort to accomplish something difficult and worthwhile.
“Flow” is the way people describe their state of mind when consciousness is harmoniously ordered, and they want to pursue whatever they are doing for its
own sake. This state is characterized by the following :
1) Having a clear understanding of what you want to achieve
2) Being able to concentrate for a sustained period of time
3) Losing the feeling of consciousness of one's self including awareness of bodily needs
4) Finding that time passes quickly (it always does when you're having fun
5) Experiencing a balance between your ability level and the challenge at hand
6) Having a sense of personal control over the situation
7) Feeling that the activity is intrinsically rewarding
8) Joy and creativity at their peak
9) Being completely absorbed and totally involved in the activity itself
Flow MODEL
The flow model is shown as a two dimensional graph showing the emotional states between various levels of perceived skill level and challenge. For example, when the perceived challenge is too high compared to how their skill level, the result is worry or anxiety for the individual as he or she may feel not capable of successfully meeting the challenge. Whereas, if a person perceives his skill (knowledge or experience) as much higher than required for a certain challenge, the individual will either feel too relaxed or even bored with the activity.
I still recall an old professor during my college days. He is quite good at the subject matters he is teaching. Some of my classmates say he is very good at teaching and that they are able to learn much better than with the other teachers. However, for some reason some of us just makes one or so stupid mistakes during his test exams. It was really frustrating not getting a perfect score with such simple problems. It got to the point that I make it a point to avoid schedules when he is the subject instructor and chose those with "terror" reputation. Looking back, it was just as if my mind just goes to sleep after perceiving such a low challenge level. It took quite an effort to be able to bypass the apathy and concentrate on the test exam.
With the right challenge suited to your perceived skill level, you experience a state of mind called "Flow". It can be quite fullfilling to feel like doing something "significant".
For those who finds the challenge too high for them, the best way to improve would be :
- Do a SWOT (Strength, Weakness, Opportunities, Threats) analysis - compare your skill levels to that needed for your desired conditions
- Improve Yourself - make a development plan for upgrading your knowledge and skill level and implement it
- Coaching - motivate yourself or get someone in your social network to do so and keep you on track with your development plan and reach your goals
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