1: Perhaps we’ve been there. 

A “peak experience.” Sometimes called “Being in the Zone” or a “Runner’s High.” That feeling of “being unconscious.”

The scientists call it “flow,” or being in a “flow state.”

It’s the mental state when we are fully immersed. Energetically focused. Total concentration. Complete absorption. Time seems to melt away. 

Being in flow is one of the secrets to peak performance. So, if we want to … continue reading

1: Under normal conditions, we only use a small portion of our brain, say 10 percent.

So, when we achieve peak performance, also known as flow, it must be because we use more of our brain. Right?

“Turns out, we had it exactly backward,” Steven Kotler writes in The Art of Impossible: A Peak Performance Primer.

“The prefrontal cortex is a powerful place,” he writes. “It’s the seat of … continue reading

1: New year. New us. 

That’s a possibility. But what precisely are we going to do differently?

One of my big learnings last year was around the power of intrinsic motivators. 

We often set goals where our reward is getting a promotion or a raise. Or being recognized for winning a game. These are examples of extrinsic motivators. Things outside of us. 

There’s nothing wrong with extrinsic motivation. But the … continue reading

1: There were two teams of lumberjacks.  

“Some were told to work smart and fast, but no pressure, do your best,” writes Steven Kotler in The Art of Impossible: A Peak Performance Primer.

“Others were given quotas. This much wood for a good week of work, this much wood for a great week,” he writes. 

“It’s important to note that there was zero financial reward given for meeting these … continue reading

1: Getting better at getting better is what RiseWithDrew is all about.

Monday through Thursday, we explore ideas from authors, thought leaders, and exemplary organizations. On Friday, I share something about myself or what we are working on at PCI.

So, what is the difference between the different types of motivation? 

Extrinsic motivation comes from outside of us. It’s when we do something for financial gain, recognition, or to … continue reading

1: Getting better at getting better is what RiseWithDrew is all about.

Monday through Thursday, we explore ideas from authors, thought leaders, and exemplary organizations. On Friday, I share something about myself or what we are working on at PCI.

This week, we’ve been exploring some of the powerful lessons from Steven Kotler’s wonderful book The Art of Impossible.

If we want to “chase the impossible” in our … continue reading

1: The answer: Yes.

It’s what scientists call “flow” or the flow state.

Flow is defined as “an optimal state of consciousness where we feel our best and perform our best,” Steven Kotler writes in his powerful book The Art of the Impossible.  

“More specifically, the term refers to those moments of rapt attention and total absorption when we get so focused on the task at hand that everything … continue reading

1: Psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi discovered something fascinating.

The people who score the highest for overall well-being and life satisfaction are those with the most “flow” in their lives.

So, what exactly is flow?

Mihaly began studying high performance in the 1970s. He traveled “around the world asking tens of thousands of people about the times in their life when they felt their best and performed their best,” Steven Kotler writes … continue reading

1: Author Steven Kotler was on a quest. 

As a self-described “science guy,” he wanted to understand the “semi-mystical” experiences he was having while surfing.

Experiences that were literally bringing him back to life. At age 30, he contracted Lyme disease and was barely able to function for one hour a day.

Yesterday, we looked at the incredible recovery he experienced after he started surfing.

Steven wanted to decode … continue reading

1: Steven Kotler was ill. It was the end of the road.

“All I would be from this point forward was a burden to my family and friends,” he writes in The Art of Impossible: A Peak Performance Primer. 

“I had a sizable collection of barbiturates in the bathroom, a couple of bottles of whiskey in the kitchen. Suicide became a very real possibility. It was no longer a … continue reading