PUSH YOURSELF

I don’t know about you, but I’m not enjoying life if I don’t have something challenging that I’m working towards. When my goals push me to the limits, I know that I’m not selling myself short. Anything less than that, and it’s hard to be sure that I’m getting the most out of life, or at least trying to.

In other words, you get the biggest payoff when you go big, and are the most prone to failure when you play it safe. Flow state is the experience of being challenged in a way that pushes you to your limits without making you discouraged. According to studies, people aren’t happier because of having more money (at least so long as they’re above the poverty line). They’re happier because of the percentage of time they spend in Flow.

When you’re forced to dig deep and use your full set of skills, you feel empowered to do even greater things. Regardless of the goals that you think you have, the real trophy is to spend as much time being happy as possible before you die. That’s what flow state has to offer.

When you’re using your expertise to push yourself, you feel invigorated, and that motivates you to focus intensely on the task at hand. This is when you have the opportunity to do your best work. Imagine that you’re playing catch. What’s more fun? To stand 10 ft in front of your friend and make easy passes? Or to run, jump, and slide as your partner leads you from 30 yards away? I could do the second all day long.

The bottom line?

A challenge makes you feel alive and primes you to crush your goals, so if you want to enjoy life as much as you can, the answer is clear: PUSH YOURSELF.

The future is always uncertain, but the present doesn’t have to be as long as you’re working hard and enjoying yourself. Nothing’s more fun than setting a goal, developing a skill, and pushing yourself to leave a mark on the world. Being surrounded by so many luxuries these days, it’s easy to confuse comfort with satisfaction, but it isn’t in your genes to just kick back and relax your whole life. You exist because your ancestors were willing to fight for their survival. Today, your struggle is less harsh. When you work hard, your basic needs are taken care of pretty easily, and the majority of your effort can go into having fun and helping others. So take advantage of it! Once you’re immersed in flow state with something you care about, there’ll be no turning back.