How to Enter a Flow State Through Creative Practice
Access creative flow so that you can flourish
Creative Flow: Your Path to Flourishing
You know that feeling when you're writing, creating, or drawing something and suddenly two hours have passed in what felt like minutes? The outside world fades away. You're so absorbed in choosing the right word or making marks on the page that nothing else exists. That's flow, and it's one of the most powerful experiences available to you.
Flow is also a gateway to flourishing. In psychological terms, flourishing means experiencing vitality, meaning, positive relationships, and a sense of alignment. It's about living fully, not just getting through the day. And, interestingly, flow states are one of the most reliable pathways to flourishing. When you regularly experience flow, you're fundamentally transforming your relationship with yourself and your life. You're building competence, discovering meaning, and cultivating the kind of deep satisfaction that doesn't depend on external validation.
Let's explore how you can harness the power of creative flow to support you toward a more flourishing life.
What Happens in Flow
The experience of flow has been described across cultures and centuries. Psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi spent decades researching flow states, describing them as moments when we're completely absorbed in an activity that challenges us just enough (and not too much). The experience of flow has several distinct characteristics: complete absorption in what we're doing, loss of self-consciousness, a distorted sense of time, and intrinsic reward (the activity itself becomes deeply satisfying for its own sake, regardless of outcomes).
Creative activities, whether that's writing, painting, playing music, or crafting, are particularly powerful doorways into flow. Why? Because they offer immediate feedback, clear goals (finishing this paragraph, completing this drawing), and endless opportunities to balance challenge with skill.
When you're in flow, something remarkable happens in your brain. The prefrontal cortex, the part responsible for self-monitoring and self-criticism, temporarily quietens down. This is called transient hypofrontality, and it's why your harsh inner voice fades when you're deeply absorbed in creative work. Meanwhile, feel-good neurochemicals like dopamine and endorphins flood your system. Your brain is literally rewarding you for being fully present.
Why Flow Supports Flourishing
Each time you enter flow, you're building mastery in something that matters to you. This isn't about becoming the world's best painter or poet. It's about the deep satisfaction of seeing yourself improve, of creating something that didn't previously exist.
Flow is also what psychologists call an autotelic experience: something you do for its own sake, not for external rewards. When you're in flow, you're not thinking about impressing anyone. You're simply present with the joy of making.
Regular flow experiences quieten the anxious, repetitive thoughts that drain your energy. When you're fully absorbed, there's no mental space for rumination about past mistakes or future worries. And the activities that bring you into flow reveal your unique interests and strengths. They point you toward your purpose.
How to Get Into a Flow State
Flow doesn't happen randomly. You can actually design your life to include more of it.
Find the challenge-skill sweet spot. Too easy and you'll feel bored; too difficult and you'll feel anxious. Flow lives where you're stretching just beyond your current abilities, but not so far that you're overwhelmed. Creative practices are perfect for this because you can always adjust the difficulty.
Minimise distractions. Flow requires sustained, focused attention. Put your phone in another room. Close unnecessary tabs. Give yourself permission to be unreachable for a little while.
Start smaller than you think. You need less time than you imagine. Fifteen focused minutes can be enough to touch that absorbed state. Promise yourself just five minutes. Often, once you start, you'll naturally continue.
Create rituals that prime you. Making tea before writing, playing specific music before painting: these cues signal to your brain that it's time to shift into creative focus.
Let go of perfectionism. When you're in flow, your inner critic quietens. But it works the other way too: if you're constantly judging your output, you'll never fully lose yourself in the process. Letting go of self-criticism makes flow more accessible. Let yourself play, be curious and experiment.
Your Invitation
Flow is a skill you can practice and develop. Each time you practice entering flow, you strengthen your ability to do it again.
Commit to one flow-inducing creative practice this week. Ten minutes of morning journaling. Sketching while your coffee brews. Choose something that genuinely appeals to you, not what you think you "should" do.
As you engage, notice what happens. Notice when time shifts. Notice when your inner critic quietens down. Notice the satisfaction of being fully present with something that you're creating. This is you actively cultivating your own flourishing, one absorbed moment at a time.
Ready to explore more ways to flourish in work and life?
Doors are currently open to The Flourishing Way, our transformative program that brings together psychological and mindfulness-based approaches with hands-on creative exploration! It's designed to help you reconnect with the vibrant, playful parts of yourself and flourish in work and life. Learn more here.
Or if you’d like to explore further ways to nurture your creativity, experience more creative flow and build a flourishing life, you can learn more about my services here.
Is this post the kind of thing you love exploring? I'd love to hear from you. You can connect with me on Instagram @the_flourishing_space or on LinkedIn.
