158 | Steven Kotler | Gnar Country: Finding State Of Flow To Achieve Peak Performance

The Greatness Machine

Flow refers to the state of being completely immersed in an activity. It is defined as a mental state in which a person’s full attention is held by a single task while enjoying the process. It is a level of consciousness where you are most comfortable and performs at your best.

An individual experiencing flow can be said to be completely absorbed in what they are doing, with a resulting transformation in their perception of time.

Steven Kotler, New York Times bestselling author, award-winning journalist, and the Executive Director of the Flow Research Collective, joins us to give us a sneak peek into his upcoming book, Gnar Country: Growing Old, Staying Rad, where he shares his personal experiences pushing himself beyond preconceived limits. 

In this episode, Darius and Steven talk about park skiing, the psychology behind flow state and its benefits, and how to reach peak performance. They also tackle how having a positive aging mindset can slow down the effects of getting older.

Topics include:

  • How Steven got into writing and journalism
  • Steven gives a sneak peek into his book Gnar Country
  • What park skiing is all about
  • Five major intrinsic internal motivators
  • What is a flow state and what are its benefits
  • Steven explains what “ghost dog” means
  • What does peak performance look like
  • Steven explains why grit is a limited resource
  • Embodied cognition and its applications
  • The benefits of having a positive aging mindset
  • And other topics…

Resources mentioned:

Gnar Country: www.gnarcountry.com

The Art of Impossible: https://www.amazon.com/Art-Impossible-Peak-Performance-Primer/dp/0062977539 

Connect with Steven:

Website: www.stevenkotler.com 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stevenkotler/ 

Connect with Darius:

Website: https://therealdarius.com/ 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dariusmirshahzadeh/ 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/imthedarius/   

YouTube: https://therealdarius.com/youtube 

Book: The Core Value Equation https://www.amazon.com/Core-Value-Equation-Framework-Limitless/dp/1544506708 

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