Consistency and Mastery

Well, Its been a little while, I've actually had a lot going on (believe it) and thankfully it's given me something to write about. Since my last post I've gone to Cape May with my entire dad's side and survived the first week of band camp. Cape May could seem like a nice place to relax, however quite often I'm stuck between cousin feuds, seeing as I'm really the only agreeable one there. Band camp takes a whole lot of time, it almost feels like I'm in school already, but thats not a bad thing. However, being in 'the pit' gives me the obligation to slack off, as at the moment 'the pit' receives little administrative attention. We don't get much done in comparison to other parts of the band. Well you don't really need to kn0w all that, but it has just made me realize how much consistency matters in achieving Flow.

Consistency in achieving flow is rather basic. If you can routinely achieve greatness, you will be great. Everyone has their great moments, but people with Flow have great moments all the time. If you're anything like me, you perform pretty well in, say, school. Usually. But then those one or two assignments come along every semester that drag you down to that dreaded B+ range? Yeah, that's me. Anyways. Consistency is grown with consistent practice, as I've so learned from 'the pit'. The first 4 days, honestly, we hardly practiced, at all. Yet just today, I decided to be a little more dedicated, with (legitimately) rigorous exercises, repetitive punishments, and most important, a lot of passion and commitment. Punishment push-ups, victory laps, and constant encourage from your peers actually help you achieve goals, and naturally the same incurs with school and your friends. If they push you to become better, and your own consent, and you return the favor, both will perform significantly better. Or so I believe. Really it's about not slacking off at all.

To do well at a process, the best strategy is often to not do poorly (although it seems redundant) at the steps . And in the same way, to achieve Flow in a process, one could go about simply doing well at the steps. Most activities are separated in microcosms, knowns as steps, which can be perfected just as the activity as a whole. In fact, mastering said microcosms is a key aspect to mastering the subject as a whole. In other words, to achieve Flow in things such as school, instead of attempting to master the subject, teacher, or any generalized concept, do your best to master every assignment given to you. Basics always come before advanced techniques...

Conclusion might come later. Probably not.