Reaching peak performance – How to do what peak performers do

By Jerry Bellune 

You’ve heard athletes talk about getting into the Zone.
That’s a state of energy that flows, lifts and propels you.
It’s a mental state with amazing results.
Psychologists call it “Flow.”
Musicians, artists and writers feel Flow.
They become euphoric in their work.
Einstein experienced it in his own thinking.
He believed it led to his theories of the universe.
You can do it in your own business or vocation.
For some, it can become a spiritual experience.
They describe it as feeling a “oneness with God.”
All peak performers learn to experience this.
To reach it, we need first to understand it.

The Zone, also known as Flow, is a mental state.
You become fully immersed in what you’re doing.
You feel energy, focus and joy in the activity.
Flow is complete absorption in what you’re doing.
Psychologist Mihály Csíkszentmihályi defines it as:

• Completely focused motivation.
• Single-minded immersion in the work.
• The ultimate harnessing of the emotions.

The emotions are not just contained and channeled.
They are energized and aligned with the task at hand.

Flow happens when we are creating something.
We are so absorbed that we feel nothing else.
We are not hungry. We are not tired.
I once worked 26 hours without stopping or sleep.
I was so absorbed that nothing else mattered.
What mattered was the challenge of creation.
I was mastering new skills in the process.
That required a lot of concentration.
My physical existence was temporarily suspended.

To enter flow, we need to learn how it’s done.
We need to record when and how it happens.
It is not easy and not everyone can do it.
You can learn more on this experience in a video:
www.ted.com/talks/mihaly_csikszentmihalyi_on_flow

Recommended reading
You can improve your flow in your career and work.
‘The ABCs of Business Success” shows you how.
Just email me for a complimentary copy.

Next: Discovering you own door to Flow.

©2013 The Bellune Company, Inc.

Neither MidlandsBiz.com nor The Bellune Company, Inc. makes any warranty as to the results that may be achieved from using this information. ©2013 The Bellune Company, Inc. All rights reserved. Requests for permission to reprint or circulate may be obtained by emailing [email protected]