Flow

Interesting read. I first picked up this book in 2005 after coming across it being referenced in game design theory (probably in A Theory of Fun for Game Design by Raph Koster, but I don't have it handy here to confirm that). I never did read more than a few pages back then, as those few pages convinced me it was more of a self-help book, and I wasn't really interested in that. The book ended up sitting on my shelf, and later got put away in a box.

My interest in game design theory continued, and I continued to see occasional references to Flow. When I recently came across the box containing the book I decided to give it another try.

It basically hammers the same points home over and over again, and I think that I probably got the core of what's being said here from some of those earlier references that I ran across in game design theory. Still, the points that are hammered home are interesting ones, and have given me some things to think about. I can definitely see having experienced "flow" in my own life as a result of the process he describes, and now that I'm more conscious of the process, I might be able to experience it more often.

1) ''[Happiness] is not the result of good fortune or random chance. It is not something that money can buy or power command. It does not depend on outside events, but, rather, on how we interpret them. Happiness, in fact, is a condition that must be prepared for, cultivated, and defended privately by each person.''

2) ''When people reflect on how it feels when their experience is most positive, they mention at least one, and often all, of the following. First, the experience usually occurs when we confront tasks we have a chance of completing. Second, we must be able to concentrate on what we are doing. Third and fourth, the concentration is usually possible because the task undertaken has clear goals and provides immediate feedback. Fifth, one acts with a deep but effortless involvement that removes from awareness the worries and frustrations of everyday life. Sixth, enjoyable experiences allow people to exercise a sense of control over their actions. Seventh, concern for the self disappears, yet paradoxically the sense of self emerges stronger after the flow experience is over. Finally, the sense of the duration of time is altered; hours pass by in minutes, and minutes can stretch out to seem like hours.''

3) ''There are two words whose meanings reflect our somewhat warped attitudes toward levels of commitment to physical or mental activities. These are the terms amateur and dilettante. Nowadays these labels are slightly derogatory. An amateur or a dilettante is someone not quite up to par, a person not to be taken very seriously, one whose performance falls short of professional standards. But originally, ''amateur,'' from the Latin verb amare, ''to love,'' referred to a person who loved what he was doing. Similarly a ''dilettante,'' from the Latin delectare, ''to find delight in,'' was someone who enjoyed a given activity. The earliest meanings of these words therefore drew attention to experiences rather than accomplishments; they described the subjective rewards individuals gained from doing things, instead of focusing on how well they were achieving. Nothing illustrates as clearly our changing attitudes toward the value of experience as the fate of these two words.''

4) ''The autotelic self transforms potentially entropic experience into flow. Therefore the rules for developing such a self are simple, and they derive directly from the flow model. Briefly, they can be summarized as follows: 1. Setting goals. To be able to experience flow, one must have clear goals to strive for. [...] 2. Becoming immersed in the activity. After choosing a system of action, a person with an autotelic personality grows deeply involved with whatever he is doing. [...] 3. Paying attention to what is happening. Concentration leads to involvement, which can only be maintained by constant inputs of attention. [...] 4. Learning to enjoy immediate experience. The outcome of having an autotelic self [...] is that one can enjoy life even when objective circumstances are brutish and nasty.''