Book · 2002 · Body, Mind & Spirit
Flow
The Classic Work on how to Achieve Happiness
#195 of 16,877 books, ranked by how many different people bring it up on podcasts
- mentions
- 26
- people
- 14
- podcasts
- 11
- episodes
- 22
- critical mentions
- 0
Happiness is not a destination or an emotion, it's a state of absorption that you can engineer.
Jay Shetty · On Purpose with Jay Shetty · Apr 2026 What they say about it
- Experience of artists and athletes“musicians experience, which artists experience”4

- Skills meet challenge“where your skills meet your challenge”3

The best things said about it
The book that changed my mind on that was Flow by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, which actually speaks about the flow state.
There's a beautiful book called 'Flow'; it discusses this state that athletes and artists can experience where time seems to warp.
Flow talks about how to experience a state of flow which musicians experience, which artists experience, which singers experience is when your challenge meets your skills.
Jay Shetty On Purpose with Jay Shetty · Aug 2022 The way it's defined in that book is where your skills meet your challenge.
Jay Shetty On Purpose with Jay Shetty · May 2021 And I was really lucky to read the book "Flow" by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi early on.
David Heinemeier Hansson Lex Fridman Podcast · Jul 2025 Where and when it comes up
How it comes up
14 people who brought it up
Why people recommend it
Flow by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi is a psychological masterpiece that explores the state of optimal experience, immersion, and deep engagement where challenges perfectly match an individual's skill level, resulting in profound fulfillment and distorted perceptions of time. The book received widespread acclaim from podcast hosts and guests alike. Jay Shetty frequently recommended the work across multiple episodes of On Purpose, utilizing it to explain that happiness is not a static destination or a fleeting emotion, but rather an engineered state of deep absorption experienced by musicians, artists, and athletes. Louisa Nicola discussed the title on The Diary Of A CEO, noting how it transformed her understanding of brain states and mental management. Zane Lowe appeared on On Purpose to discuss the book with Jay Shetty, highlighting how artists and athletes experience a warping of time when fully immersed in their creative pursuits. Ginger and other hosts on ChooseFI recommended the book during community book club segments, discussing its powerful applications for lifestyle design and personal mindset. Across these conversations, the text served as a definitive guide for understanding how human beings can consciously cultivate joy and mastery by balancing their abilities against meaningful challenges.
Every mention
Jay Shetty one of my favorite books is called flow i was recently rereading it on the blinkist app 8
“Book number six is called Flow by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi. Here is the lesson. Happiness is not a destination or an emotion, it's a state of absorption that you can engineer.”
“There's a brilliant book called Flow State, uh, by Mihi Chiken, Mihi, if I'm saying his surname right, that explains this so brilliantly.”
“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”
“there's a beautiful book called flow don't know if you've ever come across it I forget the author's name it's like Mii I think his name if I mess it up everyone please do not be mad at me I think it's cheek sent me high I think that's how it's said Mii cheeks sent me high the book's called”
“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 is when your challenge meets your skills.”
“one of my favorite books is called flow i was recently rereading it on the blinkist app”
“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”
“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”
Louisa Nicola The book that changed my mind on that was Flow by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, which actually speaks about the… 1
“The book that changed my mind on that was Flow by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, which actually speaks about the flow state.”
Paul Bloom one of the one of the catalysts of the book though i didn't know it at the time was i read this book uh flo… 1
“one of the one of the catalysts of the book though i didn't know it at the time was i read this book uh flo by uh chick sent me a long time ago and it had his radical thesis which is that people are better off when they're engaged in sort of serious intense work than when they're on”
Zane Lowe There's a beautiful book called 'Flow'; it discusses this state that athletes and artists can experience wh… 1
“There's a beautiful book called 'Flow'; it discusses this state that athletes and artists can experience where time seems to warp.”
Joe Rogan it's like I read this book a long time called flow yes and it was all about being in Flow State and all tha… 2
“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 They wrote a book together called flow and sport and they tried to teach leading athletes using the psychol… 2
“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”
Arthur Brooks One of the great things about, you know, transcendence is so Mikai Chik Mikai, who wrote the great book flow. 1
“One of the great things about, you know, transcendence is so Mikai Chik Mikai, who wrote the great book flow.”
Bill Burnett So in flow, we said, well, flow is the original book is flow, the psychology of optimal experience. 1
“So in flow, we said, well, flow is the original book is flow, the psychology of optimal experience.”
Bill Gurley the word that popped into my brain, and there's a book by this title was flow. 1
“the word that popped into my brain, and there's a book by this title was flow.”
Chris Williamson flow by me hey I'll check me hi oh that's my difficult one together in the book flow what he talks about is… 1
“flow by me hey I'll check me hi oh that's my difficult one together in the book flow what he talks about is the fact that human beings have the greatest sense of satisfaction when they are doing something”
Dave Evans So we all know the flow state from Mihi Czech semih high the the positive psychologist who invented the ter… 1
“So we all know the flow state from Mihi Czech semih high the the positive psychologist who invented the term flow the psychology of optimal experience published back in 90 something.”
David Heinemeier Hansson And I was really lucky to read the book "Flow" by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi early on - Nice, the pronunciatio… 1
“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 there's The Marvelous book um by mihai chick sent me high called flow that probably many of your listeners… 1
“there's The Marvelous book um by mihai chick sent me high called flow that probably many of your listeners know”
Ryan Holiday and there's the one of the original authors of the concept of flow isi chick set me high I don't know his n… 1
“and there's the one of the original authors of the concept of flow isi chick set me high I don't know his name I just know what it looks like and read the book”
Mentioned on the show without a named speaker3
“I finished the book flow by sent me hail and we talked about him before and his book finding flow which I've read several times and I'm very familiar with it's kind of the more accessible short version”
“I would put the recommendation out there to anyone who hasn't read it finding flow by I think you say mahale six sent Mahal have you read that book”
“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.”
Other mentions (1: passing, ad reads, own books)
“checks out my high I admire him very much”