How to enter flow state

譯者: Lilian Chiu 審譯者: 穎君 紀

A tennis player wins her second straight set,

網球選手連續贏下兩局，

feeling like she can predict her opponent's next move.

彷彿她可以預測對手的下一步。

A musician works to master a chord progression,

音樂家努力精通一段和弦進行，

unfazed by mistakes as he repeatedly plays the same four bars.

不斷重複彈奏四個小節，毫無差錯。

A scientist fails to notice her morning alarm blare from the next room,

科學家沒注意到隔壁房間的 早晨鬧鐘鈴聲大作，

having analyzed data through the night.

因為她整晚都一直在分析資料。

While each of these people is immersed in a different activity,

雖然上述這些人都沉浸在不同活動裡，

requiring specific skills and knowledge sets,

需要不同技能和知識，

all three are experiencing what is known as flow—

但他們都經歷到所謂的「心流」——

a unique mental state of effortless engagement.

毫不費力就能全神貫注於 眼前事情的獨特心理狀態。

And while you may not be a scientist or professional athlete,

就算你不是科學家或職業運動員

anyone can find flow.

也可以找到心流。

This is a good thing,

這是好事，因為經常進入心流狀態的人

as those who more frequently experience flow report higher levels

都回報自己有較多的 正面情緒、創意，和成就感。

of positive emotions, creativity, and feelings of accomplishment.

Further, research has linked it to increased productivity,

研究還進一步發現心流 有助提高生產力，

enhanced learning, and academic achievement.

加強學習能力，提升學術成就。

But what exactly is flow? And how can we find it in our daily lives?

但，心流到底是什麼？

我們在日常生活中要如何找到心流？

Flow is more than just concentrating or paying attention.

心流不只是專心或專注。

Psychologists go so far as to define flow as an altered state of consciousness

心理學家甚至把心流定義成 意識的一種變體狀態，

with several defining features.

有幾個決定性的特徵。

First, those in flow tend to feel so effortlessly engaged in a task

第一，進入心流的人通常會覺得 毫不費力就能投入工作任務中，

that time seems to fly by.

時間好像一下就過了。

They are not easily distracted.

他們不容易分心。

In contrast with cycles of procrastination,

心流和拖延是很大的對比，

when it can feel impossible to start an activity,

拖延是覺得幾乎不可能動起來，

during flow it can feel difficult to stop.

在心流中，則是覺得很難停下來。

Flow also tends to diminish feelings of worry or self-judgment,

心流通常也會減少擔憂或自我評斷，

in turn fostering creativity.

因此培養出創意。

And people report experiencing a sense of oneness with what they’re doing,

有些人表示他們的體驗就像 和他們所做的事合而為一，

allowing for peak performance.

讓他們的表現能達到巔峰。

Further, brain imaging studies have shown that flow is accompanied by changes

此外，腦部造影研究也指出， 心流會伴隨著神經活動的改變，

in neural activity,

notably in regions that play a role

尤其是在和這些功能 相關的區域：注意力、

in attention, self-awareness, and self-consciousness.

自我覺察，和自我意識。

Despite decades of research, many questions still remain.

儘管有數十年的研究， 許多問題仍然未被解答。

How do the brains of those in flow compare

和冥想等其他意識狀態相比， 進入心流時的大腦有何不同？

to those in other states of consciousness, like meditation?

Does flow arising from physical activities like sports

進行身體活動（如運動） 所產生的心流，

recruit the same brain areas as more mental tasks like writing or math?

和更心智的工作任務（如寫作 或數學）用到的大腦區域相同嗎？

And scientists are still working to understand why certain activities

科學家仍然在努力探究 為什麼有些活動

are more likely to elicit flow than others.

會比其他活動更容易引出心流。

While we don't know for sure, there are several theories.

我們還無法肯定， 但目前有幾種理論。

For example, people more often report finding flow when doing things

比如，在從事由內在動機 驅使的事情時，

they find intrinsically motivating,

比較有可能進入心流，

meaning activities they find purpose, meaning, or enjoyment in.

這些事情包括他們覺得有意義、 有目的，或很享受的活動。

This may include participating in a favorite hobby,

舉例來說，埋首於自己喜歡的嗜好，

but also tackling gratifying assignments at work,

在工作時處理讓人滿足的任務、

studying topics you find interesting, or even completing satisfying chores.

研究你覺得有趣的主題，

或甚至完成讓人有成就感的家事。

Likewise, it may be more difficult to find flow in tasks you do

以此類推，在做這類工作任務時 可能很難進入心流：

only because you have to, not because you want to.

非做不可但你不想要做的工作任務。

Other research suggests balancing personal skill level

其他研究指出，

個人技能程度和活動 挑戰度之間的平衡

with the activity’s challenge is key for finding flow.

是找到心流的關鍵。

In other words, if a task is too easy, you may get distracted or feel bored.

換言之，如果工作任務太簡單，

你可能會分心或感到無聊。

If it’s too challenging, you may become discouraged.

如果太過挑戰，你可能會氣餒。

The classically mesmerizing game of Tetris, for example,

以經典的迷人遊戲俄羅斯方塊為例，

keeps skill-challenge levels in balance by increasing the fall speed of blocks

就能保持技能與挑戰度間的平衡，

做法是隨著玩家熟練度增加 而提高方塊落下的速度。

as players get better at the game.

Still, other studies suggest that it’s most important

還有其他研究指出，最重要的 是活動必須要有明確的目標，

that activities have clear goals

and allow you to assess your progress along the way.

且過程中要讓你能夠評估你的進展。

For example, practicing a song allows you to gauge your performance

比如，練習一首歌曲時，

你可以用每個音符 彈得如何來評估你的表現。

with each note.

This also may be why people find flow when playing games of chance,

這有可能是為什麼有人會在 玩機率遊戲時找到心流，

even though those games don't require skill.

即使玩那些遊戲不需要技能。

Moment-to-moment feedback may be enough to motivate deep engagement.

逐時提供回饋，就可能 驅動深度的投入。

While no single protocol can guarantee flow,

雖然沒有制式程序 能保證讓你找到心流，

there are steps you can take to increase your chances.

你仍然可以採取一些步驟 來增加你的機會。

Find a quiet environment free from distracting noises or devices.

找個安靜的環境，

不會被讓人分心的 噪音或裝置給干擾，

Break your tasks into small, specific segments that are easy to track

把你的工作任務拆成 明確具體的小部分，

讓你很容易追蹤和從中學習。

and learn from.

Set clear end goals that are challenging but not frustratingly so.

說定清楚的最終目標，要有 挑戰性，但不能難到讓人受挫。

If you find the task to be tedious,

若你覺得這個工作任務太乏味， 設定額外的條件來增加賭注。

set additional parameters to up the stakes.

For example, when cleaning your dishes,

比如，洗碗盤時，

attempt to finish them all in a certain amount of time.

嘗試在某個時間之內洗完全部。

When running, try to keep pace with the beat of a song.

跑步時，嘗試讓步調 和你聽的歌曲節奏一致。

Most importantly, and perhaps most frustratingly,

最重要的，可能也是最讓人沮喪的，

don't focus too much on reaching flow.

不要太在意要達到心流。

That sort of distraction might just prevent you from finding it.

那種分心可能會有反效果， 讓你找不到心流。