Controlled experience

Aerosmith: "life's a journey, not a destination"

I'm reading 'Flow' by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, brought for me by Hen(http://blog.generationjava.com/roller/page/bayard/). It's an interesting read so far, although I am only 20 pages through.

He talks about a malaise in modern society - something I feel I've felt in recent years. It's described as becoming aware of the chaos surrounding us, feeling helpless within it, spinning without direction because the destination is unknown and unknowable (of course the ultimate destination is very well known and not very comforting). The cynical realisation that the delayed gratification promised to us from all sides (government, commerce, science, religion, etc) will never be achieved and therefore no longer provides the cushion it used to. The book also describes another for of self-protection: resignation from 'the world' into operating purely on natural (read biological) methods of gratification: sex, drugs, rock and roll.

He expresses his opinion that happiness is achieved through controlling consciousness so as to be 'into' whatever is the current occupation. I have picked holes in practically every point he has made thus far, but the general statement just sounds about right. I know a number of people - normally older - who are always 'into' everything they do. They seem to be the most vigorous and happy people I know. So, throw yourself into everything and you'll enjoy it! For large things this is obvious: work, hobbies, etc, but this should include times of relaxation - have you ever spent time, which would otherwise be time to relax, worrying about something? Even mundane tasks must be undertaken with one's full commitment to elicit enjoyment from them.

Additionally, he says that you must explicitly think about the motivations for yourself. Motivations, such as money, are external: foisted on us by society. Although fitting into society is important, he argues that one must be able to say what motivates you. An example and anti-example? The motivation might be to create the most wonderful computer system, therein time and money are just enablers - indeed, one might seek education and employment to further this goal - all of which should be enjoyable. An anti-example might be that you naturally feel violent - this ought to be suppressed because of the anti-social aspect of it, but even here there are channels that can be used to express violence in a controlled and socially acceptable way (rugby, car racing, perhaps even chess!).

Conclusion: have goals and throw yourself wholly into everything. Simple!

However, no two people have the same goals, so there is no correct way to do it. No two people have the same temprament and so won't throw themselves in the same way. It's a path forged by the person walking it and that path is the thing to enjoy, not the promise of where it is leading.