Accessing Flow More Intentionally and Consistently
For myself as much as for other creatives ,as I'm finding my way back to flow.
I set myself up with a promise to write this post when I’m actually having lots of trouble accessing flow myself. I wrapped up July with a sense of momentum in my writing and coaching work and felt proud of my consistency in posting and engaging on social platforms. I had enjoyed a month of creating and working with ease and fluidity. Then I very intentionally stepped out of that flow state to take a week off leading into my daughter’s wedding. I spent some days relaxing before fully immersing myself in wedding prep and celebrating my daughter and her partner with family and friends. Her stepfather and I even made the wedding cake (for one hundred), which we assembled and decorated (in between the ceremony and reception) with homegrown edible flowers. The cake was spectacular, by the way, as was every other aspect of the wedding! (Notwithstanding some family drama that got stirred up.) After all of the festivities, I very deliberately took the following Monday off to give myself some recovery and transition time before I had to dive back into my practice.
Getting back into a flow in my coaching work was relatively easy. I had lots of sessions scheduled coming out of a week off. The nature of coaching is such that once I’m in conversation with my clients, I’m fully immersed, deeply focused and engaged in the coaching process with them. However, another two weeks later I’m still finding it quite a struggle to get back into my rhythm and routines around my writing and re-engaging with social media. Never mind accessing any kind of flow state of creativity in either of these areas. Ironically, writing this may be as helpful to me as I hope it is for any artist or creative out there who is reading it!
I know from my own experience as a creative and from observing hundreds of other creatives over the years that flow state can be elusive. As I acknowledged in a metaphorical exploration of flow state in my last post, it can’t be forced. And I appreciate that there’s no one way to get into a flow state that works for everyone. What triggers and supports it may be unique for every artist and creative. We also have different experiences of accessing flow state in different circumstances or over time. But self-awareness and reflection can help us build strategies to access flow state more readily and with greater consistency.
Flow doesn’t always just come to us like turning on a tap. More often than not, we have to invite it. This means intentionally and intuitively creating the space: physically, mentally, inspirationally and sometimes even spiritually, for flow to occur.
Here are some observations and prompts to help you build awareness of what supports your creative rhythm and to experiment with new ways to reconnect with flow more intentionally and consistently. Especially when it feels out of reach!
Creating an Environment that Invites Flow
One of the most powerful ways to invite flow is by creating an environment that supports focus, creativity, and ease.
We may need different environments for different types or aspects of our work. For instance, I need the quiet seclusion of my tidy, art and plant filled office space to support my flow when I am working one on one with clients. I like to work outside on my back deck in natural daylight (weather permitting) or at my dining room table when I am writing or doing admin tasks. I need silence when I am writing, but I like some background music when I am doing admin work.
Some of my clients have discovered that the background hum of a coffee shop or the quiet of a library are environments that support flow for different aspects of their creative work.
What kinds of environments, whether lighting, sounds, scents or temperature, make you feel most ready to dive in?
How might you set up your studio or workspace so it naturally invites immersion?
What distractions would you need to reduce or remove before beginning?
Holding Time and Space for Flow to Occur
Creating flow requires not just the right environment but also time and space. Protecting even small, dedicated blocks in your calendar signals to your brain that this work matters. Just as important is giving yourself space. Space to experiment, to explore, to plan, to go deeper, to make mistakes and to recharge. (For more on this, see my earlier post: Making Time and Space to Do Our Work as Creative Professionals.)
What boundaries—physical, digital, or relational—would protect your creative time best?
Where could you create more breathing room in your schedule, instead of rushing or overfilling it?
Embodying a Mindset that Invites Flow
As artists and creatives, our mindset matters. The energy and attitude we bring to our work can either block or invite flow. With practice, we can more consciously choose a mindset of curiosity, enjoyment of the process, and presence. Choosing how we want to approach our work, even and perhaps especially the challenging or less enjoyable parts, can be a gamechanger for our experience.
It can be as simple as asking:
What is the experience I want to create for myself as I step into my work today?
Letting go of judgment about how we “should” be able to focus, or what being in flow “should” look like, is essential. For example, I realized over the past year that I had built up the idea that I needed big blocks of time to access flow in my writing. With some experimentation, I discovered instead that flow itself is what allows me to write for long stretches.
I do not always need a big block of time. In fact, it is often easier and less overwhelming to shift into the mindset of I will just see how much of a start I can get in a short window of fifteen to thirty minutes. Then, when I do have a longer stretch of time, I can slip into flow more smoothly rather than facing the pressure of starting from nothing.
What mindset shift feels most supportive of your flow state right now?
Stepping into Flow with Awareness and Intention
“The way you start your day shapes your day.” I am not sure who said it first, but the same can be said of the way we start our work as creatives. Rituals can act as anchors, bringing joy, structure, and a sense of grounding to our daily work, creating the conditions for flow.
Small, intentional actions like a warm-up or ritual signal to our mind, body and spirit that it is time to create or focus on a specific aspect of our work , whether that is applications, admin tasks, or updating our website. This might be as simple as making tea, lighting a candle, doing a quick sketch or outline or moving our body before diving into bigger tasks.
What ritual or warm-up could help you shift quickly into a creative flow state?
How much structure (an outline, plan or reference) versus freedom (improvisation, exploration) do you need to get your flow going?
Reflecting on Conditions, Cues and Patterns That Lead to Flow
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