Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi quotes

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Mihaly Robert Csikszentmihalyi. (1934 - 2021). Hungarian-American psychologist. Recognized for, and named, the psychological concept of “flow”, a highly focused mental state conducive to productivity.

Culture Shields

“One of the major functions of every culture has been to shield its members from chaos, to reassure them of their importance and ultimate success…. An unrealistic trust in the shields, in the cultural myths, can lead to equally extreme disillusion when they fail... The shields that have worked in the past — the order that religion, patriotism, ethnic traditions, and habits instilled by social classes used to provide — are no longer effective for increasing numbers of people who feel exposed to the harsh winds of chaos.”
  • Source: Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi in the book “Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience“, chapter “The Shields of Culture”, page 11. Original content published by Harper Perennial Modern Classics in 1990. Kindle edition published by Harper Collins in 2008. ISBN: 978-0061876721.
Keywords: Major_quotes Function_quotes Culture_quotes Shield_quotes Member_quotes Chaos_quotes Reassure_quotes Important_quotes Ultimate_quotes Success_quotes Unrealistic_quotes Trust_quotes Myth_quotes Lead_quotes Disillusion_quotes Fail_quotes Work_quotes Past_quotes Order_quotes Religion_quotes Patriotism_quotes Ethnic_quotes Habit_quotes Instill_quotes Social_quotes Class_quotes Provide_quotes Effective_quotes Increase_quotes Number_quotes People_quotes Feel_quotes Expose_quotes Harsh_quotes Wind_quotes

Religion

“Religions are only temporarily successful attempts to cope with the lack of meaning in life; they are not permanent answers... The form in which religions have presented their truths — myths, revelations, holy texts — no longer compels belief in an era of scientific rationality.”
  • Source: Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi in the book “Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience“, chapter “The Shields of Culture”, page 14. Original content published by Harper Perennial Modern Classics in 1990. Kindle edition published by Harper Collins in 2008. ISBN: 978-0061876721.
Keywords: Religion_quotes Temporary_quotes Success_quotes Attempt_quotes Cope_quotes Lack_quotes Meaning_quotes Life_quotes Permanent_quotes Answer_quotes Form_quotes Present_quotes Myth_quotes Truth_quotes Revelation_quotes Holy_quotes Text_quotes Compel_quotes Belief_quotes Era_quotes Scientific_quotes Rationality_quotes

Faith

“It is also possible to lose oneself in systems of action that demand nothing but faith and allegiance. Fundamentalist religions, mass movements, and extremist political parties also offer opportunities for self-transcendence that millions are eager to accept. They also provide a welcome extension of the boundaries of the self, a feeling that one is involved in something great and powerful.”
  • Source: Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi in the book “Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience“, chapter “The Elements of Enjoyment”, page 65. Original content published by Harper Perennial Modern Classics in 1990. Kindle edition published by Harper Collins in 2008. ISBN: 978-0061876721.
Keywords: Possible_quotes Lose_quotes Self_quotes System_quotes Action_quotes Demand_quotes Faith_quotes Allegiance_quotes Fundamentalist_quotes Religion_quotes Mass_quotes Movement_quotes Extremist_quotes Political_quotes Party_quotes Offer_quotes Transcendence_quotes Million_quotes Eager_quotes Accept_quotes Provide_quotes Welcome_quotes Extension_quotes Boundaries_quotes Feel_quotes Involve_quotes Great_quotes Powerful_quotes

True Believer

“The true believer is not really interacting with the belief system; he usually lets his psychic energy be absorbed by it. From this submission nothing new can come; consciousness may attain a welcome order, but it will be an order imposed rather than achieved. At best the self of the true believer resembles a crystal: strong and beautifully symmetrical, but very slow to grow.”
  • Source: Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi in the book “Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience“, chapter “The Elements of Enjoyment”, page 65. Original content published by Harper Perennial Modern Classics in 1990. Kindle edition published by Harper Collins in 2008. ISBN: 978-0061876721.
Keywords: True_quotes Believer_quotes Interact_quotes Belief_quotes System_quotes Usual_quotes Psychic_quotes Energy_quotes Absorb_quotes Submission_quotes Consciousness_quotes Attain_quotes Order_quotes Welcome_quotes Impose_quotes Achieve_quotes Self_quotes Resemble_quotes Crystal_quotes Strong_quotes Beautiful_quotes Symmetric_quotes Slow_quotes Grow_quotes

Autotelic

“The key element of an optimal experience is that it is an end in itself. Even if initially undertaken for other reasons, the activity that consumes us becomes intrinsically rewarding... When the experience is autotelic, the person is paying attention to the activity for its own sake; when it is not, the attention is focused on its consequences.”
  • Source: Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi in the book “Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience“, chapter “The Autotelic Experience”, page 67. Original content published by Harper Perennial Modern Classics in 1990. Kindle edition published by Harper Collins in 2008. ISBN: 978-0061876721.
Keywords: Key_quotes Element_quotes Optimal_quotes Experience_quotes End_quotes Itself_quotes Initial_quotes Undertake_quotes Reason_quotes Activity_quotes Consume_quotes Intrinsic_quotes Reward_quotes Autotelic_quotes Person_quotes Pay_quotes Attention_quotes Sake_quotes Focus_quotes Consequence_quotes

Flow

“In our studies, we found that every flow activity, whether it involved competition, chance, or any other dimension of experience, had this in common: It provided a sense of discovery, a creative feeling of transporting the person into a new reality. It pushed the person to higher levels of performance, and led to previously undreamed-of states of consciousness. In short, it transformed the self by making it more complex. In this growth of the self lies the key to flow activities.”
  • Source: Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi in the book “Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience“, chapter “Flow Activities”, page 74. Original content published by Harper Perennial Modern Classics in 1990. Kindle edition published by Harper Collins in 2008. ISBN: 978-0061876721.
Keywords: Flow_quotes Activity_quotes Involve_quotes Competition_quotes Chance_quotes Dimension_quotes Experience_quotes Common_quotes Provide_quotes Sense_quotes Discovery_quotes Creative_quotes Feel_quotes Transport_quotes Person_quotes Reality_quotes Push_quotes Higher_quotes Level_quotes Performance_quotes Led_quotes Previous_quotes Undream_quotes Dream_quotes State_quotes Consciousness_quotes Transform_quotes Self_quotes Make_quotes Complex_quotes Growth_quotes Key_quotes

Flow Experience

“It is not easy to transform ordinary experience into flow, but almost everyone can improve his or her ability to do so...[but] attentional disorders not only interfere with learning, but effectively rule out the possibility of experiencing flow as well... People who can enjoy themselves in a variety of situations have the ability to screen out stimulation and to focus only on what they decide is relevant... The association between the ability to concentrate and flow is clear.”
  • Source: Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi in the book “Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience“, chapter “The Autotelic Personality”, page 83. Original content published by Harper Perennial Modern Classics in 1990. Kindle edition published by Harper Collins in 2008. ISBN: 978-0061876721.
Keywords: Easy_quotes Transform_quotes Ordinary_quotes Experience_quotes Flow_quotes Improve_quotes Ability_quotes Attention_quotes Disorder_quotes Interfere_quotes Rule_quotes Out_quotes Possibility_quotes Enjoy_quotes Variety_quotes Situation_quotes Screen_quotes Stimulation_quotes Focus_quotes Decide_quotes Relevant_quotes Association_quotes Concentrate_quotes

Hearing and Listening

“It is not the hearing that improves life, it is the listening.”
  • Source: Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi in the book “Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience“, chapter “The Flow of Music”, page 109. Original content published by Harper Perennial Modern Classics in 1990. Kindle edition published by Harper Collins in 2008. ISBN: 978-0061876721.
Keywords: Hear_quotes Improve_quotes Life_quotes Listen_quotes

Mind Chaos

“Contrary to what we tend to assume, the normal state of the mind is chaos. Without training, and without an object in the external world that demands attention, people are unable to focus their thoughts for more than a few minutes at a time.”
  • Source: Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi in the book “Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience“, chapter “The Flow of Thought”, page 119. Original content published by Harper Perennial Modern Classics in 1990. Kindle edition published by Harper Collins in 2008. ISBN: 978-0061876721.
Keywords: Contrary_quotes Assume_quotes Normal_quotes State_quotes Mind_quotes Chaos_quotes Train_quotes Object_quotes External_quotes World_quotes Demand_quotes Attention_quotes People_quotes Unable_quotes Focus_quotes Thought_quotes Few_quotes Minute_quotes Time_quotes

Daydreaming

“One of the simplest ways to use the mind is daydreaming: playing out some sequence of events as mental images. But even this apparently easy way to order thought is beyond the range of many people... Daydreaming not only helps create emotional order by compensating in imagination for unpleasant reality — as when a person can reduce frustration and aggression against someone who has caused injury by visualizing a situation in which the aggressor is punished — but it also allows children and adults to rehearse imaginary situations so that the best strategy for confronting them may be adopted, alternative options considered, unanticipated consequences discovered — all results that help increase the complexity of consciousness. And, of course, when used with skill, daydreaming can be very enjoyable.”
  • Source: Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi in the book “Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience“, chapter “The Flow of Thought”, page 120. Original content published by Harper Perennial Modern Classics in 1990. Kindle edition published by Harper Collins in 2008. ISBN: 978-0061876721.
Keywords: Simple_quotes Way_quotes Mind_quotes Daydreaming_quotes Play_quotes Event_quotes Mental_quotes Image_quotes Order_quotes Thought_quotes Beyond_quotes Range_quotes People_quotes Help_quotes Emotion_quotes Compensate_quotes Imagination_quotes Unpleasant_quotes Reality_quotes Reduce_quotes Person_quotes Frustration_quotes Aggression_quotes Cause_quotes Injury_quotes Visualize_quotes Situation_quotes Punish_quotes Allow_quotes Reherse_quotes Best_quotes Strategy_quotes Optimization_quotes Confront_quotes Adopt_quotes Alternative_quotes Unanticipated_quotes Consequence_quotes Discover_quotes Result_quotes Increase_quotes Complexity_quotes Consciousness_quotes Use_quotes Skill_quotes Enjoyable_quotes

Thinking_Is_Pleasurable

“Philosophy and science were invented and flourished because thinking is pleasurable.”
  • Source: Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi in the book “Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience“, chapter “The Rules of the Games of the Mind”, page 126. Original content published by Harper Perennial Modern Classics in 1990. Kindle edition published by Harper Collins in 2008. ISBN: 978-0061876721.
Keywords: Philosophy_quotes Science_quotes Invent_quotes Flourish_quotes Thinking_quotes Pleasure_quotes

Idea Selection and Production

“External forces are very important in determining which new ideas will be selected from among the many available; but they cannot explain their production.”
  • Source: Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi in the book “Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience“, chapter “The Rules of the Games of the Mind”, page 126. Original content published by Harper Perennial Modern Classics in 1990. Kindle edition published by Harper Collins in 2008. ISBN: 978-0061876721.
Keywords: Scientific_Method_quotes External_quotes Force_quotes Important_quotes Determine_quotes New_quotes Idea_quotes Select_quotes Available_quotes Explain_quotes Production_quotes Creativity_quotes

Writing

“It is never a waste to write for intrinsic reasons. First of all, writing gives the mind a disciplined means of expression. It allows one to record events and experiences so that they can be easily recalled, and relived in the future. It is a way to analyze and understand experiences, a self-communication that brings order to them.”
  • Source: Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi in the book “Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience“, chapter “The Play of Words”, page 131. Original content published by Harper Perennial Modern Classics in 1990. Kindle edition published by Harper Collins in 2008. ISBN: 978-0061876721.
Keywords: Waste_quotes Writng_quotes Intrinsic_quotes Reason_quotes Mind_quotes Discipline_quotes Expression_quotes Allow_quotes Record_quotes Event_quotes Experience_quotes Recall_quotes Relive_quotes Future_quotes Analyze_quotes Understand_quotes Self_quotes Communication_quotes Bring_quotes Order_quotes
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