Lovelies! You know I’ve recently renewed my love affair with Flow Theory.
To get ready for the deep dive SMFA Master Class on Flow Theory, I’d love to have you start by learning your baseline for FLOW using the flow audit from the good folks at the Flow Genome Project.
A quick watch followed by a quiz:
To start your relationship with your future of FLOW, do your flow audit here.
Share below what your primary (and suspected secondary) setting is. Next we’ll dive in to jam about ways to maximize our settings, ways to lean into the most flow-enhanced life, and of course how the brilliant shutting down of the inner critic makes a state of FLOW the secret weapon that *will* make a difference.
Woo HOO!
DEEP THINKER –
My flow profile puts me here and really hit a lot of ‘wow that’s so true’ in its description!
*You’re able to tolerate and even thrive in the daily hustle and bustle, but a part of you craves stillness – true – i loooove the vibe and high from this but then need my alone time
*early mornings, or late evenings — during which you can feel free from conflicts and demands and pursue the uninterrupted concentration you value most.-
lol YES – early mornings are my cardio, yoga and gym solo sessions and late night is when i do all my creative planning and pursuit!
*You may pursue classical arts – YES here we are ‘actors’
*You’re a “maker. – YES! content creator, film and tv, live streaming content creation
*In an age as commercialized as ours, you may feel defensive about your pursuits. – YES used to feel this, having to defend. Worked through this now and I belong here
*Your ability to cope with the fast pace of the world around you might be bolstered by cardio and strength training. – lol do this every morning! been missing it like crazy since in post recovery – it def sets me up for the day!
this and much more is very spot on!
Yayayayayayayay! Love it!
Me toooooo! SO spot-on.
12-part master class going up TODAY, beauties!! 🙂 Eeeeeeeeeeeeee!
Me too! Makes total sense. Excited for the 12 part series!
Can’t wait to hear how you’re bringing more flow into your life! 🙂
Hmmm- crowd pleaser. Not sure how much I like this. But it could be that I’m feeling a bit burnt out from crowd pleasing (maybe not the right kind as well).
Be interesting to dive deeper on this- as I do love to work with groups of people creating films and I wonder if the huge amount of time I’m actually at home is actually counter-productive to my best state of FLOW.
This is very interesting and a lot of emotion is coming up. I thought I’d be more of a deep thinker as I NEED alone time. But maybe I need small amounts to recharge so that I can go back into the world and create.
Mind blown.
X
It’s sooo interesting isn’t it to find out this kind of scientific informations about our flow types.
I also like u get a solid injection from creating and being around creative types and building engaging with them like a group on the same exciting mission. Really pumps me up and I’m guessing that’s my secondary because the primary deep thinking is def when I do my best base works to which the engaging with others jumps off of what Ive laid down as my deep thinking plans.
It will be interesting to see where your flow training takes you and how to fine tune it further 🙂
when or what do u spend most of your time actually doing when u get yr best vibes and ideas. for me it’s when Im planning and building out in my digital OneNote the concepts, plans, steps etc and from there I go and vibe high with others having built the foundation of what I want to create.
That’s definitely possible, Andromeda. I can tell that my secondary results help to buoy my primary. And in ALL flow profiles, we cannot *stay* in a state of flow. No matter WHAT our profile. I’ll be talking in the master class series about ways to protect against fatigue no matter what the profile… but I think what you’re experiencing right now (or were when you posted this comment) is that you’re in one of flow’s famous “recovery” stages. 🙂 It’s all good! Cannot wait to dig deep on this with y’all!
OMG This is AMAZING!
As an Aries, I wanted to choose all options. I have felt moments of physically releasing into Flow, but my peak time comes when I’m quiet and meditating or doing my Morning Pages, completely outside of the inner critic, and everything just FLOWS.
So I got Deep Thinker as my primary, which kind of surprised me, so I retook the test and went with my 2nd answers and got Crowd Pleaser.
Deep Thinker makes sense because how I “engage with Flow ranges widely and defies easy categorization.” Arts, photography, hiking, sensitive to the “always on” thing. I dig it.
Secondary Crowd Pleaser: This also rings true because I get high from being with friends, at concerts, performing, etc. But I do tend to burn hot and fast and thus burn out quickly, needing to retreat to the restorative deep thinker state above.
Absolutely Fascinating!
Isn’t it? So dang cool! And now you know that just because you go WAY high with that peak state of flow of being a crowd pleaser doesn’t mean it’s the most *efficient* or long-lasting state of flow you can achieve. Ooh! So, good!
Ha! YEAH. 🙂
Same results here, I could have written your post Laura!
Surprise surprise, I’m a DEEP THINKER. Could not be more spot on. Especially the early mornings/late evenings being our most productive times. And being an all-around hermit.
On the rare occasion I wake up at 5 and can’t go back to sleep, I find that’s when I unintentionally get the most work done. Perhaps I should set an earlier bedtime and rise before the sun? My evenings are my sacred time to decompress and have a glass of wine and watch TV, a ritual I helplessly inherited from my parents (going 27 years strong doing the same thing every night, which is what I love about them). I know I would benefit from more introspective, quiet time for reading, meditating, yoga or anything else Next Tier Me finds happiness from.
Ooh! Eager to learn whether you attempted the 5ayem wakeup call to see what your productivity is like in that key flow state!! 🙂
I got CROWD PLEASE-UH! Which makes sense! I notice more and more that I get a giant energy boost from being around other creatives, BUT (I couldn’t find my Secondary; I assume it has something to do with this…) if I spend TOO much time with crowds and don’t take time for deep thinking and quiet time, the energy can spin into a frenetic one rather than productive. I certainly do not need drugs (except maybe caffeine sometimes!) for any of this. Pumped to become part of the Status-FLOW, Bonnie!
Yeah, baby! <3 I bet once you get more consistent about feeding your recovery phase of flow you'll get clear on what your secondary is. 😉
Coooool!!! 🙂
WOO! My first day back in the dojo in, what…. 1 month? 2? Blerg. But I am here!
Anyways, my first time around I got Deep Thinker, which feels mostly right, but not completely. So I took it again, expecting maybe flow go-er or hard charger, and I got Hard Charger (which then felt surprising, because as I was selecting the different options, it just seemed so hippie, yoga/nature loving. …Says the girl who went on a hike up near Mt St Helens for the challenge and the need to clear my mind and re-center myself).
Anyways, I literally know nothing about flow theory except what is here, so I am excited to check this out!
❤️
Yay! Welcome back, hard charger! 🙂 I totally see that. *ahem* Isn’t that your motorcycle parked over there? 😉
Thank you!! Haha true, and I am *dying* to learn how to surf. And American Ninja Warrior is my go-to workout motivation.
Hard Charger made more sense to me as I worked on part 2, and made me realize my idea of flow being all about a muse also needs to be broadened. Still hasn’t clicked 100%, but I’ve got 10 more days to work in this and understand it all!
It feels so good to be back.
CROWD PLEASER all the way! No surprise there, I’ve always known I’m an extrovert and this seems right in line with that knowledge. Now if I could stop fighting my natural state and let myself be the extroverted crowd pleaser I know I am, that would be great! Can’t wait to dive into this more and see where Flow Theory brings me.
Yay!
I got FLOW GOER. And while in the first second I did not know what to do with this, the description made it quite clear, so I agree, that’s me 🙂
*Everything* has to *always* be in an order I *approve* of. Which sounds terrible in a way, but they even gave the example in the description of a made/unmade bed. Heck, if my bed isn’t made, I cannot focus on anything else… I’m not kidding.
And while a part of my brain thinks “that just means you are a control freak”, it actually doesn’t. Only certain things have to be EXACTLY the state I want/need them. If that’s the case, yippie, happy Julia.
So I freely accept my compulsive need to make my bed every time a pillow looks “wrong”, to clean the kitchen EVERY evening – and to spend five minutes just editing the line breaks of this post…
I guess, since I usually manage to have my things in order, that’s why people perceive me as balanced. Since the FLOW GOER seeks to achieve the state of flow pretty much every single second of the day, well, voila, balance is my bullseye 😉 I’m either there, or striving for it. Case in point, haha 🙂
Oh my gosh, what a GREAT example of exactly what you’re describing, right here! YES! So good, Julia. Totally see all of that and I love how you’re finding the power in it!
Huh- I got Hard Charger! Interesting.
Some of the initial description rang true- I do love pushing myself! But the description then went on to talk about thrill-seeking and the use of substances, which I’m not about. The most I’ll do is coffee & performing live. But even though the details threw me off, it is true that I need to use flow to slow down and enjoy the journey.
Wow! Take the test again and choose the answers that you were deciding between anytime you felt yourself in a “tossup” situation. I’d love to see what your second test reveals!
Also, Katie, your personality does have a bit of a hard charger vibe to it! When I think about how intense you were in the earliest days of the 100-day challenge, in the comments and with your expectations for yourself EVERY day… that’s very hard charger in setpoint. 🙂
Flow Goer
*being in flow is essential to who I am as a person
-yoga, ecstatic dance, meditation, creative expression
*must continue to face difficulties/conflict head on
-avoid sneaky self-medication behaviours/habits
BY
*building systems/structures for accomplishment of tasks/goals
aka: utilizing, practicing and continuing the work the muscles built from the tools/references offered through GIG4NT
yes. Yes! YES!
Secondary: Deep Thinker
perfect complement and super useful to recognize the balance that is crucial for me in terms of vigorous (often Physical) productivity in flow state (Flow Goer) and the equally essential to my well being; soft, restorative and replenishment flow state in Deep Thinker.
Learning about each state has helped me to see and connect the dots of how each flow state applies to the different aspects of my life, as I categorize them: business, artistry, individual
and how essential it is for me to seek and carve out time for each aspect. As well, how I have cultivated activities which allow me to tap into flow state in each different way, and how those activities make up my daily-do list items.
These types are perfect loving labels for my different modes/states of being:
I am a high-achieving A-Type personality who is most often described as INTENSE and ambitious
and
I am the Daydreaming, sensitive, quietly thoughtful introvert who craves alonetime and space to process and reflect.
I am excited to delve deeper into Flow theory and how I can maximize the states of flow and relish all the different stages.
🙂
I got Hard Charger the first time and I was pretty sure that Deep Thinker would be my secondary. So I took it again and chose my second choice answers and that’s what I got. I totally see both of them. Slow and steady is not my idling speed and I love doing things that are scary — just not normally ones that I think might actually hurt me. And the diving deep immediately sounds just like me.
The late nights of the Deep Thinker are also totally me. Stillness and quiet is definitely when I do my best creative thinking. Plus the bit about being sensitive to modern society’s always on quality is totally me.
Hard charger. I don’t do the risky risky things so much any more, but I sure do jam ahead without taking the safety course first, if you know what I mean. I’d rather learn on my own, hard knocks and all, than sit around studying and preparing. That said, I do have regrets sometimes. How to combine the two?
Ooh, this will be fun to chew on at the SMFA Escape!
I’m a Flow Goer! I thought I’d be a Deep Thinker, but since I didn’t get that… Maybe that’s my secondary.
It’s so funny that I popped into this because my next quarterly focus word is flow/ease. SYNCHRONICITY!!!!
Ooh, yay! <3
Hard Charger – though I’m not 100% sure I was thinking of “Flow” correctly when taking the test.
I did hike Machu Picchu (and loved it!) though I don’t know that I felt like I was in any Flow state – it was HARD AS FUCK! (I definitely cried on day 4 from exhaustion rather than joy!)
I think I was trying to equate the Flow with my creative pursuits, very specifically, rather than a more general sense of ease in life. I feel like I’m most at ease vegging out with a good book (spiritual or fictional), working on a jigsaw puzzle, or making a good meal – none of which has much to do with my life in the business of acting.
I’m in awe of your Machu Picchu action, girl!
I took the profile – Deep Thinker. I believe I am a Crowd Pleaser secondary. So neat!
I’m a DEEP THINKER and I’m not surprised about that at all. 😀 While I do like being around people and get really inspired by amazing individuals, I rarely ever get in the flow when I’m surrounded by people. I do get my inspiration and knowledge by being around people, but I create the best things when I’m alone and I do need a lot of alone time to recover from being around people – to process all we talked about and to recharge my energy levels.
Btw, I took it twice, for some of the questions I chose different answers that would be my second choice and I still got Deep Thinker. Perhaps I don’t have a secondary?
I’m a Deep Thinker. The description was pretty accurate for me. And it’s true that the digital age overwhelms me. I’m more of a hands-on, touchy-feely kind of person (prefer a hardcover book over a Kindle). I also need breaks from the world to get grounded or re-centered which I often forget and then wonder why I feel so frazzled. Looking forward to the rest of this Flow Program in the Vault. By the way, I feel this is a valuable assessment to take as knowing what needs to line up to allow for creativity to flow is different for everyone. It’s cool to understand what mine is because I’ve never really thought about it this specifically before. I just notice the times when it happens and how good it felt.
No surprise I’m a DEEP THINKER. My pursuits are almost all solitary ones: writer/painter/pianist. The only ones that seem out of place with this are producer/director, which are more collaborative, and I can definitely get into a flow state when I’m on set directing a project, that’s for sure.
But I find that I’m MOST often finding a state of flow with my writing and I’m craving time at the piano or painting, which are deeply solitary arts. Perhaps my secondary would have to do with something collaborative, so either Crowd Please or Flow Goer.
Probably!! I think with a lot of this, we’re X% one thing and Y% another thing and they can be pretty close but we still get the first one as the result, in assessments like this.
Taking this quiz taught me I’m apparently primarily a Crowd Pleader, and secondarily a Flow Goer. This was interesting to me! I thought Deep Thinker would be higher up on the list considering that I do love to access Flow through soothing, repetitive actions like watercoloring, but it came in dead last. But I realize that ALL of these Flow styles apply, just depends on what percentage of space they take up.
Also, one of my homework assignments in the new on-camera acting class I started today was to clock when we notice we’re “in” and “out” of Flow, which I thought was SUCH synchronicity. 🙂 We even have to pick a Flow theme song!
LOVE that! Who’s the teacher of this on-camera class? I love knowing flow is being taught in more places!! It’s SO good.
(And OF COURSE you’re a Crowd Pleaser. OF COURSE.)
Bonnie,
I am a Deep Thinker. Haven’t gotten my secondary yet, but I am going to assume it might be Hard Charger or Crowd Pleaser… waiting for it and when it arrives…I shall share.
Interesting feelings as I started revisiting this course. Emotional… raw…open… We’ll see where this journey takes me.
Love,
Crabby Deb