In the previous article I wrote about the path of minimum resistance or the law of minimum effort. We saw that this path is chosen by all of us because this is how we are naturally structured, so that for our actions we choose to consume the minimum amount of energy. We have also seen that the effects of this law can be noticed in all spheres of life and that - also thanks to it - we are sometimes satisfied with little.
However, the law of minimum effort has an extraordinarily beautiful facet that brings us great value through minimal effort, thus paving the way for a sure success. This facet is the subject of this article.
How you open the way to success through the law of minimum effort!
Have you noticed that when you force things, they do not go well, to a large extent? It is as if the stronger your force, the more you feel like you are driving with the parking brake on! The harder you try harder, the less efficient you are, because it is not in vain that the people are often told to hurry slowly if they want immediate results.
Those who are very successful do not consume their resources and energy with inefficient and unnecessary things, but work targeted in their field, but especially do not get exhausted by working, but the intense work they do somehow flows naturally. You see them recharge while consuming their energy. Exhaustion, extreme fatigue, and overload with countless tasks are counterproductive and bring only minimal, fragile results.
"Do what you really love, and you will never work another day in your life!"
When we make an effort in a field that we really like and have results, we recharge while working, because the effort in the area that we like and attracts us is not as consuming and exhausting as the effort where we do not have any attraction and pleasure when we work. This is how we become better and better in the field we like. Attention together with our energy go where we load our actions with emotion and passion.
The law of minimum effort, which tells us that we will always have the tendency to use the minimum of energy, shows us in this situation that our productivity will be maximum in the area we like the most. It shows us that this is the area where we work as if we were not working, because we do it out of passion, joy, enthusiasm, delight and a lot of inspiration. The state we enter when we work in this way is called in psychology the state of flow.
The state of flow - the state in which we have a maximum productivity, creativity, and inspiration
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi describes the optimal experience, the state of flow, as that activity that when we do it, nothing else seems to matter and that we do it just for the sake of doing it. One of the most beautiful aspects of the flow state is that it does not belong to any field.
We might think that entering this state is easier in creative work. You can imagine the painter as being in another world while painting, as well as the pianist who improvises; but studies show that factory workers, construction workers, farmers, or day laborers also have such conditions. All studies on the state of flow show that it is not the experience itself that matters most, but how it is approached. Namely with a clear intention, followed by a sustained effort, with maximum attention and concentration.
And the law of minimum effort is what makes this intense effort not be perceived as such in the state of flux, which means that we will work with great effort, inspiration, efficiency and passion, we will work dearly without feeling exhausted, on the contrary, feeling we are fulfilled, feeling that we are doing what we have to do. And these are just the first steps towards knowing, exploring, and fulfilling one's purpose.
The purpose of the mission and its fulfillment
Even if you don't think that everyone has a purpose in life and you prefer to simply let yourself be carried away by everyday events or, you think like Mihail Eminescu that "the purpose of your life is to look for your true self", you have certainly noticed that when you benefit from the advantages offered by the law of minimum effort and enter the state of flow, you feel a very special fulfillment that is not offered by any imposed or scheduled activity or one that is not necessarily desired. Ideally, the profession we choose should be in line with our purpose. Then you will never work another day in your life, as I said a little earlier.
That is the condition you see, for example, in a doctor full of dedication who does not shun from receiving patients even long after the schedule during a pandemic; of a mother who gives some of the food cooked for her children to the hungry child of the neighbor, or of the educator who always surprises his students with his extraordinary creativity and continuous adaptation to the child's needs.
There are countless examples that we can find here, but their common denominator is that expression of their own uniqueness.
So, I invite you now to explore this uniqueness of yours, that "set" of gifts, abilities, aspirations, and incomparable way of being!
If you need advice or help regarding the awareness of this uniqueness and the entry into the state of flow, contact me for a coaching session.
I wish you good luck and I'm looking forward to talking to you!
