Consider a time when you were at your very best. Can you identify the Flow Factors during each experience? Perhaps you might consider a time where you performed at your worst. Same question. In either case, our best and worst experiences give us ample opportunity to identify what principles, when present (support) or absent (deny), our peaks states of engagement and flow.
Most of us have these profound experiences; either on the job, on the playing field, with friends, etc… mark them as “great” or “awesome”, but miss the lessons learned. Since I was a teenager I have been a student of high performance. For me the tennis court was my first instructor. I was passionately consumed with mastering principles, techniques and strategies to improve my tennis game, but recognized at the higher levels of competition, that this wasn’t enough.
There came a time where almost everybody at the top had good games and high-end skills. I like to call this the “what-ness” of the game (or the technical dimension). I soon realized that there was much more to the game than just mastering technical strategies, skills, and best practices. There was another game to master: the personal leadership game. I like to call this “who-ness” (or the personal dimension). These represent the principles, tools and strategies that elicit one’s peak performance or “flow” in every “Meaningful Life Arena” (MLA). How one does this is through Attentional Leadership®—placing attention with intention on your WIN (What’s Important Now).
I’ve often said to clients and students alike that what you know often takes a back seat to who you are becoming. Of course you must be technically competent, but that is only half the journey. You must work on both sides of the equation to develop the X Factor—that takes your game to the next level—whatever your MLA.
Note here that Technical Knowledge (What you know) by itself is not enough. You must add Attentional Leadership Knowledge, which governs “who you are” in relationship to your technical game to develop the X-factor. My book, The 3 Secrets of Attentional Leadership—Optimize Your Performance, Influence, and Leadership from the Inside-Out, was designed to help you develop the awareness, strategies, planning and accountability for finding more flow every day. You can read the first chapter here today.
To help my friends, colleagues, and clients put these principles and ideas to better use, I have put together a Finding Your Flow Series that provides additional content, value and resources. This series will follow the questions used to assess your flow in our 1080° Sweep™ Assessment.
If you’ve read the book you’ll remember that picking a life arena and asking yourself these questions, gives you an opportunity to raise your level of awareness and to identify your current Flow Assets and Flow Liabilities. The book helps you to boil these down into a workable Personal Flow Formula. This formula sets the stage for your personal leadership training agenda.
In addition to the book, this Flow Series will help support your personal leadership journey by
- Increasing your knowledge of flow and peak performance principles
- Discussing daily practices and offering additional Flow Tool templates (available on the website under Resources)
- Suggesting additional resources
Most articles in this series will be brief, just 1-2 pages in length and to the point. Read all 60+ issues and you will have a comprehensive framework and tool-kit for finding more flow in your life–guaranteed!
I look forward to this great journey ahead and appreciate you being a part of this growing community of flow seekers who are looking for more than just “getting by” but “flourishing” in their work, play, and life.
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