“Time flies. Self vanishes. Performance soars. This is flow.” 

Steven Kotler

I have enjoyed catching up a little on my bike-riding over the past few days. I upped my daily workout from ten kilometers to ten miles and the transition has – so far – felt good.

Yesterday I decided to make a change from my routine neighborhood route and go for the open road, so now I have a straightforward 10.5 mile course I can repeat going forward.

I rode north on Saint Andrew, took a right on Northern Boulevard, then made a left on Daniel Street – eventually crossing the river before turning on 258-South to head back through Princeville then across the Main Street bridge and back into Tarboro.

The ride was relaxing and enjoyable, but what made it more interesting is where my thoughts travelled. Here’s what happened:

Flow state – in the zone:

I was making tracks along Northern Boulevard and felt exceptionally good. Hmmmm, I thought. This is a great tempo, I’m cruising 18-20 mph, the geometry and the balance of my bike all feel just right, I’m breathing easily, everything is smooth, the clarity is unreal… this is what the performance gurus call “flow state”… I think I could ride like this for an hour….

I understand flow. It happens sometimes when I am writing, or even teaching. Flow state is optimal deep absorption and focus, associated with top-level performance and creativity.

But then I turned a corner, hit a stiff wind head on and, suddenly, I was this old guy pedaling uphill, gearing down and gasping for air! It hadn’t been flow state that propelled me so much as a 15-mph tailwind!

But here’s what I am thinking: Maybe flow is a combination of everything, internal and external both. Sometimes it’s the wind at our back that makes the difference so we can slip into the moment, engage the momentum and seize the day… other times it’s something else.

So many factors at play:

Most of my best moments have come along because other factors, often outside of me, helped facilitate the circumstances for my success. The letter of affirmation from someone touched positively by my work… the walk by the river on a cool morning that put my spirit in the right frame… the perfect day that set up that evening where I wrote a new song… the friend who offered me their beach-house for a week to finish up my new book (that hasn’t happened yet but I’m open…!).

Sometimes – usually – the wave I am riding (or need to ride) actually starts somewhere else before setting up the possibilities for me.

God is at work behind the scenes – always – and if my spirit is in tune with The Spirit then who knows what might happen.

The Creator has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end. – Ecclesiastes 3:11

Flow state is a useful concept but the idea only scratches the surface: this life is best experienced in a state of grace. – DEREK