Conscious Flow

  No valid plans for the future can be made by those who have no capacity for living now. - Alan Watts Modern research validates Watts’ insight. The Cognitive Limits of Planning Psychologists have found that chronic stress and anxiety, often rooted in anticipation of the future, reduce working memory, decision-making capacity, and creativity. When someone is consumed by fear of “what’s next,” their brain literally struggles to hold the pieces necessary to create effective plans. In contrast, mindfulness practices, which train the brain to return to the present, improve executive function and emotional regulation. A 2011 Harvard study using fMRI scans showed that mindfulness increases activity in the prefrontal cortex, the very part of the brain responsible for long-term planning. Ironically, focusing on now strengthens the ability to prepare for later . Flow States and Creativity Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi’s research on “flow” describes the deep immersion people experience when t...