This part of the academic year anticipates the completion of academic work and a reflection on the progress made over the early part of the year. I recently had contact with a young woman who has just been awarded a D. Phil (English equivalent of a PhD) from Oxford University. In an email she wrote “It was wonderful to feel good about my work, to be challenged and yet to feel relatively calm, at the end of the whole process, to know that the finished product is okay and that the whole thing is finally over!"Without knowing it, she had just described what the psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi refers to as “Flow". It is the experience one has when fully engaged with an activity that provides an optimum level of challenge; when there have been clear goals and consistent feedback; an opportunity to focus on the task, and a sense of being so absorbed and immersed in the task that one has a distorted sense of time. It is an ideal psychological state for learning and accomplishing challenging tasks. The flow experience is intrinsically rewarding, provides a sense of control and is immensely satisfying.
“Being in flow" involves clear direction, alertness, energy and commitment to the task and is quite different to “going with the flow" which suggests a lack of direction and drifting aimlessly without expending energy. The different uses of the term “flow" should not be confused as they are diametrically opposed. Students have described situations where they have been in flow and they are excited by opportunities to learn in this way. Flow: the sense of challenge, confidence, calm and accomplishment described by the student from Oxford is exhilarating.
Students who have experienced being in flow have a sense of attainment at this time of the academic year. Their engagement and efforts have been rewarded with a personal sense of achievement, whether or not this has been publicly acknowledged with an award. The holidays provide opportunities for students to find flow through various activities, sports, hobbies, further study and academic work. The wonderful experience of being in flow can be found in a variety of these challenges, but holidays should also enable us to relax, wind down and enjoy free time when we can “go with the flow" so we are rested and energized for the rest of the year.
I hope you are able to enjoy time together as a family and experience both varieties of flow this holiday season.
© Michele Juratowitch
michele@clearingskies.com.au