We can’t complete this mini-dive into flow without landing on the challenge/skill balance.
The challenge/skill balance is finding that sweet spot where learning isn’t too hard and it isn’t too easy. Take a moment right now and think about those moments in your day that you might fill with something enjoyable, something you would look forward to. What activity could you dabble in that might up the quality of your leisure life. Maybe you want to learn how to salsa dance or maybe you want to improve your writing skills. Maybe you want to learn a craft such as embroidery or scrapbooking. When learning something new, we need to balance the challenge level with the current skill level.
Brains respond to a continuous pressing over time at the optimal challenge level. The higher the skill level, the more flow you’ll find. If a challenge isn’t great enough, you’ll feel bored and most likely drop your pursuit. If the challenge is too hard, you’ll be filled with anxiety every time you approach the new activity and pretty soon you won’t be interested in participating anymore. Sometimes we think this activity or that activity just isn’t for us, when really what’s going on is the challenge/skill balance is out of whack.
Whatever activity you choose, give it a chance. Use what you’ve learned about breaking it down into smaller pieces and find that level that’s just above your current ability level. It might take some trial and error and you might need to lean into a mentor to up your progress quickly and dynamically. Pay attention to how your mind and body are feeling when pursuing a goal. Your emotions and your physical state will let you know if an activity is too hard or too easy. Anxiety, nervousness and the feeling of wanting to escape are signs that we need to dial back the challenge level or add some support. This might look like restlessness, sweaty palms or an off feeling in your stomach. Too easy of a task and we often get tired, distracted, slumped in our chair or looking around the room.
Make sure to give yourself intermittent breaks when working on your clear goals. I call these brain breaks. Start to pay attention to when your ability to focus stumbles, you might need a break about then. For some, it’s every 25 minutes, for others every 90. You’ll learn what feels right and what kinds of activities make the best breaks for you. You might get a snack, go for a brief walk or rest your eyes for ten minutes. Whatever brain break you choose, make sure the activity is cognitively unstimulating. If you choose something really fun and engaging, it may be harder to jump back into the struggle of meeting your goals.
