An excellent book. Our team has loved this one. Kotler grabs the idea of flow and shakes out the cobwebs of an old idea with compelling examples and science. This is a read for those passionate about the greatness that humans can achieve when we align and focus our talent and skill, to the right challenges, and in the right way. The examples are primarily from extreme sport.
The stories of what athletes have achieved recently, how they went about it, and what we know about the neurobiology underpinning flow states are well articulated. The practical elements are well laid out but the reader will have to work through how to apply it in meaningful ways in their own lives. Whether you aspire to play moving music, base jump, enjoy your hobbies, enrich your relationships, or take your business into flow, you will not be wasting your time.
What Kotler and Wheal are doing at the Flow Genome Project is worth checking out.
The Rise of Superman: Decoding the Science of Ultimate Human Performance
Steven Kotler
Published: Quercus, 2014, 256 pages