3 ways to support flow in your work

Flow-state is the secret sauce when it comes to being productive, happy and well in our work as founders or freelancers.

Flow-state is when one is absorbed in a task that feels effortless, where you’re not conscious of thoughts about yourself and certainly am not getting hammered by your inner-critic. It's harder within family life when we have to respond to others. It takes practice to achieve it and it's so worth it. Here are 3 things you can do to support your pursuit of this elusive thermal.⁠
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1: Ritual: Learn from Pavlov's dogs and set up cues for yourself which your unconscious mind associates with feeling relaxed and ready to let go. Be that playlists, a room fragrance or particular breakfast.
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2: Make space: Learn from Virginia Woolf, her 'Room of one's own' wasn't just a physical space to write (although having a desk or office just for work is a luxury that support this process) but also the mental space that comes from being on top of other problems.⁠
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3: Don't force it: Flow is not about rigid routine, yes I get up and do my rituals and approach my workspace in the same way every single day and have done for 15 years BUT if I feel like I need to go and sleep or go out and have fresh air or speak to a real life human I do it. This part is scary at first, the inner critic screams 'but you have a deadline you have to keep on working' but I know better and I trust that if I listen to what I really need flow-state will return and I will get it done.⁠

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