Active vs. Passive Flow States

Ever been so absorbed in something that the world around you just… disappeared? That’s “flow”. A psychologist with an impossibly long name (Mihály Csíkszentmihályi, if you’re curious) first described it in 1975, and scientists are still fascinated by it today.

Think of flow as coming in two flavors: active and passive. They’re like two sides of the same coin, each with its own special magic. Let’s break this down.