Fun, Learning, Originality and Work ‘FLOW’

“Education is what remains after one

has forgotten what one has learned in school.” —Albert Einstein.

 

What you do effortlessly is often done flawlessly.

‘Flow’ means the action or fact of moving along in a steady, continuous stream. It also connotes a steady, continuous stream or supply of something. Related words include movement, motion, course, passage, current, flux, drift. Creativity is fun, learning, originality and work – FLOW. FLOW’s strength is ‘TIME’ – training, information, motivation and education.

Please follow me, it will flow with time. When I was writing this article, my wife woke up at midnight and asked if we could pray…I said “Okay, why not? Just give me a few minutes”. I was engrossed that I didn’t know when five minutes turned fifteen minutes. I was busy thinking on how to effectively convey my thoughts. She (my wife) had, also in the space of ten minutes, slept, waiting for me to lead prayer. Coincidentally, she woke up and said “I think you should concentrate on the flow”! I didn’t discuss the topic with her neither did I show her the manuscript. Then I thought to myself, why can’t this pretty woman also go back to bed and concentrate on the flow of nature as well!

 

Writer’s Block – “creative slowdown”

I struggle with originality and new ideas as a writer. I remember a particular day I sat to write, believing in my strength as a ready writer. I could barely think and form a sentence. Sometimes a “ready writer” may not be a steady writer, but a steady writer is a ready writer. It does not matter whether one is fast or slow; steadiness is readiness and flow.

 

Escape Velocity – “creative speed-up”

In Physics, escape velocity is the speed that an object needs to be traveling to break free of a planet or moon’s gravity and leave it without further propulsion. I believe this is also applicable to creative ability. There comes a time when creatives no longer have to struggle with ideas; it simply flows, unhindered. Keep thinking up!

 

Flow theory – “creative balance”

Dr. Mihaly Robert Csikszentmihalyi was a Hungarian-American psychologist. He recognized and named the psychological concept of ‘flow’, a highly focused mental state conducive to productivity. Flow is the state of concentration and engagement that can be achieved when completing a task that challenges one’s skills. The theory suggests that flow can be achieved when the balance is struck between the individual’s skill level and the level of challenge presented by the task. When the task is too easy, individuals may become bored and disengaged, while when the task is too difficult, individuals may become anxious and stressed.

No matter how much they try, Ronaldo or Ronaldinho cannot sing like Asa or Asake. The reverse is also true. Have you ever wondered how a prolific author or inventor is able to coin – create, originate, invent and name something aptly, brilliantly and coherently? It’s certainly not as easy as ABC’s. How about a ‘smooth’ flow by a presenter, or an actor acting out different roles in a movie? Flow is connectivity in creativity. It is triggered by training, information, motivation and education (TIME). Flow is creativity in motion or motion in creativity. Time and knowledge drive flows. Knowledge is incremental; it grows with ‘TIME’ – training, information, motivation and education. The difference between here (present feature) and there (‘future present’) is ‘T’, which represents TIME – A crude idea generated through the creative process can later, in the process of time, evolve and morph into a lucrative business.

Fostering creativity through fun – “They talk of the dignity of work. The dignity is in leisure.” – Herman Melville. Flow, sometimes, may be triggered by an atmosphere of ‘play’. Good entertainment in games, sports, music, movies, comedies, etc, contributes to mental state and, may, at least, be a good catalyst for creativity to thrive. Research has shown that games or gamified products establish a rewards cycle that floods the brain with dopamine, a neurotransmitter that helps the brain associate certain behaviors with feeling good. These dopamine reinforcements are a normal part of daily living, recreation, and learning.

Fostering creativity through learning – Creativity thrives best within the knowledge economy which is characterized by innovation and education. Innovation drives productivity, which in turn, fosters creativity. Productivity is the effectiveness of productive effort, especially in industry, as measured in terms of the rate of output per unit of input. The creative process is the act of solving problems through innovation. It is a systematic approach to solving problems by finding new ways of looking at old concepts. This system can be executed by an individual or a team of people for personal, educational, or business purposes.

Fostering creativity through originality – Originality is like a fountain; it never runs dry. Think beyond the margins of your imagination! Creativity is thinking outside of the prescribed formulas. Some believe that original ideas do not exist. Well, I do not belong to that school of thought. I believe in the power of imagination; the genuineness, uniqueness and newness that creative thinking induces and introduces. “It is better to fail in originality than to succeed in imitation.” – Herman Melville

Fostering creativity through work – “Thinking is the hardest work there is, which is probably while few people engage in it”. – Henry Ford. Remember that innovation is what creativity looks like. The former is just a ‘mark’, while the latter is a ‘justified market’. Innovation is work! Talent or creativity is enhanced by productive effort; a commitment to deploy time, energy, attitude and money (TEAM) in taking creativity from ideation to implementation or from conceptualization to commercialization. It is the right balance between Fun and Work that triggers Learning and Originality (F-L-O-W). “Creativity is just connecting the dots.” – Steve Jobs. Sometimes, it overflows…

“I must work the works of Him who sent me while it is day; the night is coming when no one can work.” – John 9:4 (NKJV).

 

“Education is what remains after one

has forgotten what one has learned in school.” —Albert Einstein.

 

What you do effortlessly is often done flawlessly.

‘Flow’ means the action or fact of moving along in a steady, continuous stream. It also connotes a steady, continuous stream or supply of something. Related words include movement, motion, course, passage, current, flux, drift. Creativity is fun, learning, originality and work – FLOW. FLOW’s strength is ‘TIME’ – training, information, motivation and education.

Please follow me, it will flow with time. When I was writing this article, my wife woke up at midnight and asked if we could pray…I said “Okay, why not? Just give me a few minutes”. I was engrossed that I didn’t know when five minutes turned fifteen minutes. I was busy thinking on how to effectively convey my thoughts. She (my wife) had, also in the space of ten minutes, slept, waiting for me to lead prayer. Coincidentally, she woke up and said “I think you should concentrate on the flow”! I didn’t discuss the topic with her neither did I show her the manuscript. Then I thought to myself, why can’t this pretty woman also go back to bed and concentrate on the flow of nature as well!

 

Writer’s Block – “creative slowdown”

I struggle with originality and new ideas as a writer. I remember a particular day I sat to write, believing in my strength as a ready writer. I could barely think and form a sentence. Sometimes a “ready writer” may not be a steady writer, but a steady writer is a ready writer. It does not matter whether one is fast or slow; steadiness is readiness and flow.

 

Escape Velocity – “creative speed-up”

In Physics, escape velocity is the speed that an object needs to be traveling to break free of a planet or moon’s gravity and leave it without further propulsion. I believe this is also applicable to creative ability. There comes a time when creatives no longer have to struggle with ideas; it simply flows, unhindered. Keep thinking up!

 

Flow theory – “creative balance”

Dr. Mihaly Robert Csikszentmihalyi was a Hungarian-American psychologist. He recognized and named the psychological concept of ‘flow’, a highly focused mental state conducive to productivity. Flow is the state of concentration and engagement that can be achieved when completing a task that challenges one’s skills. The theory suggests that flow can be achieved when the balance is struck between the individual’s skill level and the level of challenge presented by the task. When the task is too easy, individuals may become bored and disengaged, while when the task is too difficult, individuals may become anxious and stressed.

No matter how much they try, Ronaldo or Ronaldinho cannot sing like Asa or Asake. The reverse is also true. Have you ever wondered how a prolific author or inventor is able to coin – create, originate, invent and name something aptly, brilliantly and coherently? It’s certainly not as easy as ABC’s. How about a ‘smooth’ flow by a presenter, or an actor acting out different roles in a movie? Flow is connectivity in creativity. It is triggered by training, information, motivation and education (TIME). Flow is creativity in motion or motion in creativity. Time and knowledge drive flows. Knowledge is incremental; it grows with ‘TIME’ – training, information, motivation and education. The difference between here (present feature) and there (‘future present’) is ‘T’, which represents TIME – A crude idea generated through the creative process can later, in the process of time, evolve and morph into a lucrative business.

Fostering creativity through fun – “They talk of the dignity of work. The dignity is in leisure.” – Herman Melville. Flow, sometimes, may be triggered by an atmosphere of ‘play’. Good entertainment in games, sports, music, movies, comedies, etc, contributes to mental state and, may, at least, be a good catalyst for creativity to thrive. Research has shown that games or gamified products establish a rewards cycle that floods the brain with dopamine, a neurotransmitter that helps the brain associate certain behaviors with feeling good. These dopamine reinforcements are a normal part of daily living, recreation, and learning.

Fostering creativity through learning – Creativity thrives best within the knowledge economy which is characterized by innovation and education. Innovation drives productivity, which in turn, fosters creativity. Productivity is the effectiveness of productive effort, especially in industry, as measured in terms of the rate of output per unit of input. The creative process is the act of solving problems through innovation. It is a systematic approach to solving problems by finding new ways of looking at old concepts. This system can be executed by an individual or a team of people for personal, educational, or business purposes.

Fostering creativity through originality – Originality is like a fountain; it never runs dry. Think beyond the margins of your imagination! Creativity is thinking outside of the prescribed formulas. Some believe that original ideas do not exist. Well, I do not belong to that school of thought. I believe in the power of imagination; the genuineness, uniqueness and newness that creative thinking induces and introduces. “It is better to fail in originality than to succeed in imitation.” – Herman Melville

Fostering creativity through work – “Thinking is the hardest work there is, which is probably while few people engage in it”. – Henry Ford. Remember that innovation is what creativity looks like. The former is just a ‘mark’, while the latter is a ‘justified market’. Innovation is work! Talent or creativity is enhanced by productive effort; a commitment to deploy time, energy, attitude and money (TEAM) in taking creativity from ideation to implementation or from conceptualization to commercialization. It is the right balance between Fun and Work that triggers Learning and Originality (F-L-O-W). “Creativity is just connecting the dots.” – Steve Jobs. Sometimes, it overflows…

“I must work the works of Him who sent me while it is day; the night is coming when no one can work.” – John 9:4 (NKJV).