Audiobook5 hours
Finding Flow: The Psychology of Engagement with Everyday Life
Written by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi and Sean Pratt
Narrated by Sean Pratt
Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
4.5/5
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About this audiobook
Part psychological study, part self-help book, Finding Flow is a prescriptive guide that helps us reclaim ownership of our lives. Based on a far-reaching study of thousands of individuals, Finding Flow contends that we often walk through our days unaware and out of touch with our emotional lives. Our inattention makes us constantly bounce between two extremes: during much of the day we live filled with the anxiety and pressures of our work and obligations, while during our leisure moments, we tend to live in passive boredom. The key, according to Csikszentmihalyi, is to challenge ourselves with tasks requiring a high degree of skill and commitment. Instead of watching television, play the piano. Transform a routine task by taking a different approach. In short, learn the joy of complete engagement. Thought they appear simple, the lessons in Finding Flow are life-altering.
Author
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi (1934-2021) was a professor at Claremont Graduate University and former chair of the Department of Psychology at the University of Chicago. His books include Creativity, The Evolving Self and the national bestseller Flow.
More audiobooks from Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
The Evolving Self: A Psychology for the Third Millennium Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Good Business: Leadership, Flow and the Making of Meaning Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
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Reviews for Finding Flow
Rating: 4.271241846623094 out of 5 stars
4.5/5
459 ratings17 reviews
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5When I picked up this book (Finding Flow) I had some expectation but, after covering the opening chapters and getting to the grips of the scientific exposition about flow experience beyond the usually shallow deliberations widely published on the web...I was glad that I picked Mihaly Csikszentmihaly's book...As the title suggests, the book talks about flow: what it means, why is it relevant, places and activities it can be found, how it differs due to people and environment, how to cultivate/enable it, and how it affects life. It also talks about topics such as pleasure vs enjoyment, consciousness, self, ego, life goals, and such. It does so by using a diverse collection of real-life examples from scientific exercise. One of the best aspects of the book is that it lays down the pros and cons of most aspects it presents. Flow as presented in this book is one of the determinants for a good life. Although equating flow with happiness may provoke controversies in some circles, I personally submit that the book based on that equality.
1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5This book takes a scientific approach to finding meaning in life. How to be more aware of our actions and be more present. Well written and definitely worth a read.
1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5What an amazing book full of great insides!!! Absolutely Loved It!!!
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5must read for anyone and everyone , lot of wisdom packed into this tiny audio book , I encountered flow in some instances of my life but I didnt realize and understood back then not aware of how to get there in other activities aswell this audiobook provides a framework on how to lead a fullfilled life with enriching experiences
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Quite interesting as all data is based on true research.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Useful for all, providing insight on how to enjoy your life and feel better!
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Really helpful for those looking into maximizing their focus. Going into flow is one of my main areas to increase and this book, when followed the advices, could help a lot.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Loved the 8-th and 9-th chapters in particular. And loved how the author emphasized on some particular ideas, by “replying” them in the book.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Life-changing! I will definitely incorporate this information into my personal system.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Too philosophical. Writer knocks religious faith. It was also quite flat.
- Rating: 1 out of 5 stars1/5Very bad book. The “Flow” is the only thing that had some sense but he does not goo deep to it at all.
He talks about goals, which is so obvious.. and even so his book is completely out of focus, picking things from here or there. Looks like the author had to publish something for curricula... or by his employer’s
pressure , and did it in two/ three weeks .A complete waste of time. - Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5I love the pieces of advice given in this book. Finding flow is such a challenge nowadays when there are lots of demands to our attention.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Ce livre est très bien écrit et bien documenté, avec des exemples à l'appui. Le livre explique beaucoup de concepts de manière intelligente intégrée et globale
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Definitely a flow book worth re-listening! Super interestingly flow genius!
- Rating: 1 out of 5 stars1/5The more I read about psychology, the more I wonder how people can't smell the snake oil. I'm in a management development program and Csikszentmihalyi's work was recommended. Perhaps I got the wrong one. This was certainly a load of rubbish.
Opinions as fact, conclusions tailored to support the thesis, odd references to ESP and spirituality, the only thing I can recommend is he has a really cool name.
I pulled the thread on a few of the topics and felt my skin crawl reading up on "psychic entropy." I studied thermodynamics and can only feel sadness if these guys have to borrow terms from real science to legitimize the flimsiness of theirs.
Habitual readers of self-help tripe might like this book. Nuff said. - Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Concept that our leisure can be active and passive; we can involve ourselves in short-term rewarding relaxation t-v watching with diminishing returns, or more fulfilling active study, learning an instrument, experimentation, or hobby where there is high-difficulty and high-skill.. In these situations it may require and initial investment of time before a sense of getting somewhere; the author refers to the sense of time-flying, as 'flow.' An 'Autotelic' person is one who has purpose on the inside, and isn't as much motivated by outside rewards, or is self-motivated; a self-starter. He suggests that a person learning music, to be a scientist, doing prayer/meditation, or working out, focus on building attention rather than the rewards that may follow from the discipline. Building attention and concentration will improve flow in said person's life. Highly interesting book with better core ideas than most, but with some filler and repetition.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I found this book to be an enjoyable introduction to the concept of flow. The combination of self-help meets science, along with it's small size made the topic enjoyable and interesting. Despite the author's tendency to stray a bit far into humanistic realms than I choose to follow, I moved on to read this book's prequel: 'Flow'.