How to Find Flow

How to Find Flow

A multi-skill B2+ English lesson

• Describing experiences and expressing preferences
• Understanding and applying a psychological concept
• Making suggestions

• Listening/video comprehension

• Vocabulary: productivity and creativity

START

Agree or disagree?

“The best moments in our lives are not the passive, receptive, relaxing times . . . The best moments usually occur if a person’s body or mind is stretched to its limits in a voluntary effort to accomplish something difficult and worthwhile”

Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi

Warm-up question

Can you think of a moment in your life where you were completely absorbed in an activity and lost track of time? What were you doing, and how did it feel?

TED Ed Video: How to Find Flow

Video

1. What is flow?2. What does flow feel like?3. What kinds of activities are most likely to lead to a flow state? 4. When do you usually experience flow? 5. Tell us something interesting you learned from the video or share a question you have about it.

Collaborative vocabulary activity

Click here to download notes for the video. Complete them with a partner.

Collaborative vocabulary activity

Click here to find the completed notes.

Discussion Questions

01

What are some common barriers you face that prevent you from entering a state offlow? How can you overcome them?

How could you experience more flow in your daily tasks, whether they are work-related, academic, or personal hobbies?

02

Choose an activity that you do regularly and discuss how to make it more conducive to flow.

03

How can the concept of flow be applied in group settings, such as in a workplace orin team sports?

04

05

How can understanding and achieving flow help you in reaching your life goals?

Make suggestions to help these people find flow.

Scenario 1

Scenario 2

Scenario 3

Alex works in an open-plan office that is often noisy, with colleagues chatting and phones ringing constantly. Alex finds it hard to concentrate on complex tasks.

John has to complete a project that he finds utterly uninteresting and unengaging, making it hard for him to stay focused and motivated

Maria has tons of things to do, causing her to feel stressed and unable to focus on any single task effectively.

Make suggestions to help these people find flow.

Scenario 4

Scenario 5

Scenario 6

Emma is writing a book. She has no deadline, but she feels really overwhelmed by such a big project, leading her to procrastinate and feel overwhelmed.

Linda has taken up playing guitar but she feels frustrated because she is not yet good enough to play songs for her family and friends.

Sarah is trying to write a report at home, but she is frequently interrupted by her children needing attention, leading to constant breaks in her concentration.

"[Flow is] being completely involved in an activity for its own sake. The ego falls away. Time flies. Every action, movement, and thought follows inevitably from the previous one, like playing jazz. Your whole being is involved, and you're using your skills to the utmost."

Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi