Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience (Harper Perennial Modern Classics)

“Csikszentmihalyi arrives at an insight that many people can intuitively grasp, despite our insistent (and culturally supported) denial of this truth. That may be, it’s not what happens to us that determines our happiness, but the manner in which we make sense of that reality. . . . The manner in which Csikszentmihalyi integrates research on consciousness, personal psychology and spirituality is illuminating.” —Los Angeles Times Book Review

The bestselling classic that holds the key to unlocking meaning, creativity, peak performance, and true happiness.

Legendary psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi’s famous investigations of “optimal experience” have revealed that what makes an experience genuinely satisfying is a state of consciousness known as flow. All the way through waft, people most often experience deep enjoyment, creativity, and a total involvement with life. In this new edition of his groundbreaking classic work, Csikszentmihalyi (“the leading researcher into ‘waft states’” —Newsweek) demonstrates the ways this positive state will also be controlled, not just left to chance. Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience teaches how, by ordering the information that enters our consciousness, we will be able to discover true happiness, unlock our potential, and greatly enhance the quality of our lives.