Today’s Excerpt:

Watch “In the Zone” (2-min video) from Pixar to see a range of actors and musicians talk about what flow feels like.

To get into a flow state an activity can’t be too easy or too hard. If it’s too easy, you’ll be bored. If it’s too hard, you’ll be stressed.

Test it out.

First, try doing an extremely easy activity, such as slowly walking in a circle for one minute.

Second, try doing an impossibly difficult activity, such as jumping from one side of the room to the other side of the room.

Flow is the sweet spot where our skill matches the difficulty of the task we’re doing.

Note that for older kids and teens, flow is mostly about leaning into a difficult task for a sustained time. For younger kids and littles, it’s mostly about having time and space to experience natural play and exploration.