A few months ago I posted a blog entitled "Are You in the Zone". In this posting I discussed a state of performance which Pat Williams, VP of the Orlando Magic calls "the zone". In this state, Pat Williams is talking about the feeling an athlete or any other person experiences when they are doing something that they are truly talented at. When they are in "the zone", their talents are maximizing their ability to perform and hence the quality of the performance and their high level of performance is creating a passion for the very thing that they are talented at. It is like a self sustaining energy source.

 

As discussed, this zone is available to anyone doing anything that they are passionate about and talented in. Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, a prominent US psychologist, has named the state of operating in the zone a state of "flow". He has studied this state of flow extensively for years and has demonstrated that those that operate in this state of flow are measurably happier, more productive, more efficient and motivated. He goes on to say that "Attention is like energy in that without it no work can be done, and in doing work it is dissipated. We create ourselves by how we invest this energy. Memories, thoughts, and feelings are all shaped by how we use it. And it is an energy under our control, to do with as we please; hence, attention is our most important tool in the task of improving the quality of experience." Basically, we are not living up to our potential unless we are applying our focused attention and energy as best possible to a task. We cannot do this fully unless we are in "the zone" or in a state of "flow". We cannot be in the zone or in this state of flow unless we are operating in our Strength Zone.

 

Another word that apply describes this state is Autotelic. This word originates from the Greek words aut and telos which mean self and goal. Put together they mean that an Autotelic person is self motivated by internally driven goals, or as Daniel Pink in his book DRIVE says, intrinsically motivated.

 

Essentially an Autotelic person is a someone who has determined how they can best apply their talents (their Strength Zone) to a specific purpose in life. Applying your focused strengths to an area that you are passionate about results in an experience that is energizing, motivating and produces better results than most people can dream of delivering.

 

Become an Autotelic person......Discover your Strength Zone and apply this to your area of passion!