How To Unlock Insane Focus On Command (Part 2)

Author

Goose McGrath
October 07, 2023

You’ve procrastinated for days.

Now time’s running out.

But this time, you’re not dragging your feet…

You’re not as stressed or as frantic…

And you’re not struggling as much…

Because last week, we learned about flow.

(If you haven’t read Part 1, go do that… right now.)

You’ve been doing your homework by embodying the first two Pillars of Flow.

You left your phone in another room…

You avoided the daily doomscroll…

You dedicated more attention to your task than your touchscreen, all to reduce Flow Blockers.

You committed to work within minutes of waking up…

You noticed an amplified attentiveness and alertness…

You’re starting to access the state of Flow Proneness…

You’re feeling the effects of flow…

And flow makes hard tasks seem effortless.

Now it’s time to take you all the way there.

Achieving the Flow State involves two more Pillars, so let’s dive in.

Pillar 3: Flow Triggers

Last week we thanked Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi—the Father of Flow—for the concept of Flow State.

But we can also say, “Cheers for the Flow Triggers!” because he helped identify those, too.

A Flow Trigger, according to Rian Doris from the Flow Research Collective (FRC), is “a precondition that instantly drives us into flow.”

AKA, your non-negotiables that must be fulfilled before other things can happen.

And, if you ask Csikszentmihalyi about Flow Triggers, everybody’s got 3.

Csikszentmihalyi identified 3 main Flow Triggers:

  1. Clear goals.

  2. Immediate feedback.

  3. Challenge/skills balance.

Sounds great, but how do you put this into practice?

Grab your surfboard and I’ll show you.

Surfing is one of the FRC’s top examples for Flow State because it’s the perfect combination of Csikszentmihalyi’s triggers.

Trigger 1: “I want to ride that massive wave.” (A clear goal)

Trigger 2: “I can feel the power of the waves beneath my board.” (Immediate feedback)

Trigger 3: “That wave was harder than the last one, but I rode it.” (A satisfying challenge)

The more Flow Triggers you have in any activity, the faster you’ll enter a Flow State…

And the deeper you get into Flow State…

The longer you’ll be able to sustain it.

Pillar 4: The Flow Cycle

Now, once you reach Pillar 4, everything you’ve been working on comes together.

You’ve entered the Flow Cycle—a predictable pattern of stages used by the world’s most productive people.

The Flow Cycle has 4 Stages:

  • Stage 1: Struggle—The initial discomfort and resistance to starting a task.

  • Stage 2: Release—The transition phase that propels you from struggle to flow.

  • Stage 3: Flow—The state of optimal productivity.

  • Stage 4: Recovery—The time for rest and reintegration after the Flow Stage.

When it comes to the Flow Cycle, Stage 3 is the most important.

That’s “THE” Flow…

The be-all and end-all of this whole Flow experience.

But in reality, I want you to pay special attention to Stage 1: Struggle.

Why?

Because most people don’t make it past this Stage.

Stage 1 is when you can't bring yourself to start a task…

And if you do start it…

You can’t focus long enough to finish it.

There’s a mental block screaming, “Just don’t do it, it’s easier that way!”

And that’s precisely why most people hate the Struggle Stage.

It’s uncomfortable...

It’s uncertain…

It’s honestly a pain in the ass…

But these feelings are an indication that you are about to learn something new…

You are about to grow.

The Struggle stage is about learning how to be patient with yourself as you work on your:

  • Attention span.

  • Persistence.

  • Focus.

…And patience is hard.

But stick it out.

Try treating Stage 1 like a daily exercise.

Instead of adding reps, add minutes of focus to your task.

Add one minute and then another…

And push yourself a bit further every day.

Because once you get past the Struggle Stage, the rest will click.

Focus, motivation, optimal productivity, then rest.

The true, start-to-finish Flow State.

Unlock Insane Focus on Command

“But wait, Goose, you didn’t teach us the magic trick to unlock insane focus on command!”

… No, I didn’t.

Because there isn’t one “simple” magic trick.

There’s no secret brain button that turns your focus switch to “On” (yet)

The “trick” to unlock insane focus on command is practice.

A series of tasks, exercises, and commitments that you do every day.

So, your one magic trick is actually Four Pillars.

The key to unlocking insane focus on command is to:

  1. Ditch the Flow Blockers.

  2. Access Flow Proneness.

  3. Dive Into Flow Triggers.

  4. Push through the Flow Cycle.

The more persistently you run through each of these pillars, the better you’ll be at achieving Flow State…

And the faster you are at achieving Flow State…

The more instantaneously you’ll be able to unlock Flow State on command.

Achieving Flow

The ultimate strategy for achieving Flow State is simple.

Make these pillars easily accessible…

Make these pillars easily applicable…

And make these pillars approachable, so everyone has a chance to unlock insane focus on command.

They say practice makes perfect.

But practice also makes a more effective Flow State, too.

So, last week, we practised Pillars 1 and 2.

This week, we dove into Pillars 3 and 4.

What can you do next?

Try:

  • Identifying a task or an activity that balances your current skill set while also challenging you, to experience what a Flow Trigger feels like.

  • Thinking about the time you’ve spent in the Struggle Stage and ask yourself:

    • Why was it hard? What did you do? What could you have done differently?

    • Write down your answers and identify ways you can beat those struggles next time they come around.

  • If you find yourself constantly struggling with your attention span, make it a goal to exercise that mental “muscle.”

    • Next time you start a task that requires focus, spend 30 more seconds on it than usual.

    • Slowly increase the amount of seconds every time.

Keep going, keep practising…

Flow State is within reach.

Stay awesome, stay powerful.

P.S: Whenever you’re ready, here are a few things you might be interested in:

  1. Advice On Starting Your Business: A powerful Youtube video where I answered a reader’s question on how to start a successful business.

  2. 'How I Quit Alcohol' Podcast: One of my favourite interviews I’ve ever done. If you’re interested in learning how I came from rock bottom to create a life I’m proud of, you’ll want to listen.

  3. Follow me on IG: Get bite-sized video content and behind-the-scenes of my nomad entrepreneur life

  4. Join The Waitlist: We’re creating an exclusive online community of 6, 7 and 8-figure entrepreneurs seeking to become citizens of the world and achieve self-actualisation through business, lifestyle design, and personal evolution. I think you’ll love it: The Nomad Entrepreneur Network

And, of course, if you know other people who might enjoy content like this, please share this with them.

Your help in building this community will be forever appreciated.