Book · 2002 · Body, Mind & Spirit
Flow
The Classic Work on how to Achieve Happiness
Why people recommend it
Flow by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi is a seminal work in psychology that explores the optimal state of consciousness known as flow, where individuals become entirely immersed and energized in an activity through a delicate balance of challenge and skill. Louisa Nicola recommended the book on The Diary Of A CEO to explain cognitive brain states, while Jay Shetty recommended it on On Purpose with Jay Shetty to describe how athletes, musicians, and comedians achieve peak performance. David Heinemeier Hansson discussed reading the book early in his life during an appearance on the Lex Fridman Podcast to examine happiness and productivity. Joe Rogan similarly brought up the book on The Joe Rogan Experience to connect the concept of the flow state to personal experiences like playing basketball and performing stand-up comedy. Jane Hirschfield also referenced the book on The Ezra Klein Show to discuss moments of intense, undistracted focus and the temporary dissolution of the ego.
Who recommended it
- Jay Shetty Recommended
- Joe Rogan Discussed
- Steven Kotler Discussed
- Louisa Nicola Recommended
- David Heinemeier Hansson Discussed
- Jane Hirschfield Discussed
Jay Shetty — 2 mentions
“you've reminded me of this great book that I read a long time ago called Flow State it's all about flow and it talks about this idea that comedians speakers musicians athletes experience Flow State”
“it's called flow and for anyone who doesn't know flow the way it's defined in that book is where your skills meet your challenge”
Joe Rogan — 2 mentions
“it's like I read this book a long time called flow yes and it was all about being in Flow State and all that stuff and I used to get it sometimes when I played basketball not not as often because I wasn't that good”
“you can think about that when you can think about something that over welms your concentration and requires you to be 100% present and in the moment you're not checking your Twitter you're not [ __ ] seeing who's M at you you're there and You're Timeless you know time goes by you don't even realize it it's like I”
Steven Kotler — 2 mentions
“They wrote a book together called flow and sport and they tried to teach leading athletes using the psychology how to use flow”
“they wrote a book together called flow and sport and they tried to teach leading athletes using the psychology how to use flow”
Louisa Nicola — 1 mention
“The book that changed my mind on that was Flow by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, which actually speaks about the flow state.”
David Heinemeier Hansson — 1 mention
“And I was really lucky to read the book "Flow" by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi early on - Nice, the pronunciations, spot on. - You know what? I had to practice that with AI over the last few days because I knew I was gonna cite him and I butchered his name several times.”
Jane Hirschfield — 1 mention
“there's The Marvelous book um by mihai chick sent me high called flow that probably many of your listeners know”
Mentioned on the show without a named speaker — 2
“There's a beautiful book called 'Flow'; it discusses this state that athletes and artists can experience where time seems to warp.”
“I connected to a beautiful book called Flow, and Flow talks about how to experience a state of flow, which musicians experience, which artists experience, which singers experience; it's when your challenge meets your skills.”