FLOW, a Missive Message in Painting Happiness

People ask me how do you do it? What it is like to loose yourself into your painting work? Tennis players, golfers, other athletes say they can't feel anything when they are in the flow. The harmony of mind and body causes them to move effortlessly and play instinctively. Some of my paintings have been started and completed in complete flow, or the time was standing still, and hours went by until I noticed it was dark, or sometimes dawn. How does it work? Pure concentration and hours go into the craft of working. By complete immersion in feeling, thoughts, and action. Only with flow, will you gain control over your psychic energy, the basic feel for creativity. Being in the flow or in the moment eliminates all self-consciousness. Who you are and what you're doing, become one. Only when it is over with a feeling of satisfaction in the rush of happiness, do you know it has occurred. At that time, you can't wait to get it back. It is allusive and requires patience. I have explained flow to my students who asked me FIRST. I don't go around bragging, explaining, or preaching flow. It is very personal. When I try to explain to my students the phenomenon of flow, I have to ask them if they know how to be prepared for flow. One must be prepared to experience flow in knowing their subject. They have to be prepared. They have to have complete energy to focus. In other words, they have to feel good, they have to have their bodies well nourished, they have to feel energy of positivity. They have to be excited about diving into their project. One has to be not distracted, and confident, ready for action. One has to be totally relaxed, and well prepared. And one cannot conjure it up and be disappointed that it didn't happen. Sometimes, people feel flow without knowing it. They get involved in a project, and time is illusive, and goes by very fast, and hours pass, and they have no idea that hours have passed until they're completely exhausted and fulfilled at the same time. I have had people in my creativity classes tell me they have had a baby completely in flow without feeling any pain. You cannot rationalize or intellectualize flow. You can only respect the possibility of your subconscious taking control at a time when your skill level is equal to your goal level. At that moment the creative energy generated from the harmony of inspiration and action is pure and uninhibited, and will often result in your best work. There are no bells or whistles to alert you. You just know. And sometimes don't even know until the flow is interrupted by your knowledge of complete satisfaction. It's a lot like falling in love at first sight. These eight elements further characterize flow: There are clear goals every step of the way. The action and awareness are merged. There Is a balance between challenges and skills. Skills are equal to the There is immediate feedback by the doing. In my case the actual painting tells me what to do next. There are no distractions. The subconscious takes over. (my intuition finishes the painting) There is no worry or fear of failure. Self -consciousness disappears. The sense of time becomes distorted. One is completely relaxed.The activity becomes an end in itself. As the above qualities indicate, the flow-like state is not primarily characterized by subjective feelings,even positive ones. Rather, the essence of flow is the removal of the interference of the thinking mind. When Michael Jordan is “in the zone” and making that behind-the-back pass, he is not consciously thinking “how can I pass the ball,” and if he did, he would interrupt his flow-like state and probably throw the ball into the stands. Absorption in a task indicates the absence of the self, and a merging of your awareness into the activity you are engaged in. As positive psychologist Martin Seligman puts it, “Consciousness and emotion are there to correct your trajectory; when what you are doing is seamlessly perfect, you don’t need them. Creative people tell me that they experience flow in myriad and unexpected places, like swimming laps, sewing, driving or jogging. An author I know told me that he h “The best moments in our lives are not the passive, receptive, relaxing times… The best moments usually occur if a person’s body or mind is stretched to its limits in a voluntary effort to accomplish something difficult and worthwhile.” ~ Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi (1990)° Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi discovered that people find genuine satisfaction during a state of consciousness called Flow. In this state they are completely absorbed in an activity, especially an activity which involves their creative abilities. During this “optimal experience” they feel “strong, alert, in effortless control, unselfconscious, and at the peak of their abilities.” In the footsteps of Maslow, Csikszentmihalyi insists that happiness does not simply happen. It must be prepared for and cultivated by each person, by setting challenges that are neither too demanding nor too simple for ones abilities.While Csikszentmihalyi’s research focuses on the area of work and creative output, he sees that the state of flow is applicable to relationships and situations; even times of adversity can transform into a challenge rather than a setback. He even concludes that there are people who have developed their flow to such an extent that they are able to translate every potential threat into an enjoyable challenge, and thereby maintain an inner tranquility as a continuous state of mind. He calls such a person an “autotelic self,” someone who “is never bored, seldom anxious, involved with what goes on and in flow most of the time.” Now one might think that such a state is reserved for the few great human beings such as Socrates, Gandhi, or the Dalai Lama; but in fact, the examples that Csikszentmihalyi gives are of ordinary people who are able to find delight in ordinary daily tasks. So, don't think you can go home and just conjure up flow. It has to come to you. Here is how I suggest finding flow in your life. Be prepared. Be open to it. Know your subject matter. Be inspired. Be confident in your skills level. Be happy. And when you are honored by a few hours of flow, share it with one of your Artists friends. Know that you have had something very special from your subconscious find you alive and aware and open, to reward you for just being alive and experiencing the pure joy of being a human being on this planet.