Book SummaryThe Rise of Superman, by Steven Kotler

1-Page Summary1-Page Book Summary of The Rise of Superman

In The Rise of Superman, journalist Steven Kotler argues that mastering flow, or a state of deep focus, is the secret to performing at your best and unlocking your higher potential. He credits flow as the reason athletes have been shattering performance barriers in recent decades at a faster rate than ever before—climbers scaling harder routes, surfers riding larger waves, and runners running faster races. He argues that harnessing flow will allow you, too, to achieve your most ambitious goals. Whether you’re tackling a business plan, a coding contest, or a climbing route, anyone can unlock this state of...

The Rise of Superman Summary What Is Flow?

Kotler defines flow as a mental state of deep, sustained focus. When in flow, you experience optimal engagement, enjoyment, and performance while doing an activity. Psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi originated the concept of flow in the 1960s while studying motivation and performance. When he interviewed different people about the times in their lives when they’d performed at their best, the participants all mentioned this state of effortless focus.

(Shortform note: In Flow, Csikszentmihalyi describes two surveys he conducted to study what made experiences enjoyable: one interviewing experts and the other surveying average individuals. Through the descriptions his interviewees provided, Csikszentmihalyi found that activities you enjoy naturally encourage the full engagement and peak performance effects of flow—in other words, enjoyment of a...

The Rise of Superman Summary The Brain in Flow

In a flow state, temporary changes occur in your brain that allow you to perform at your best. Specifically, your brain activates the regions associated with intuitive thinking and releases neurotransmitters, enabling you to perform at a higher level. Let's look at each of these benefits.

Intuition Overtakes Conscious Thinking

In a state of deep focus, the regions of your brain dealing with conscious, higher thinking deactivate, while the parts associated with intuition activate. Your brain siphons energy away from non-essential, higher functions, such as your sense of time and your self-awareness. For example, you might forget to eat because you’re less aware of your bodily needs.

(Shortform note: In Blink, Malcolm Gladwell refers to using the intuitive parts of your brain as “unconscious thinking” and argues that it can be an effective form of decision-making if you have ample past experience to draw from. He explains that your unconscious mind “thin-slices” your past experiences: In other words, your brain picks out...

The Rise of Superman Summary The Cycle of Flow

Kotler cautions that, unfortunately, you can’t enter a flow state on command: Flow consists of four steps, including two "pre-flow" steps, and you must cycle through the pre-flow steps before you can become truly focused. Let’s look at the four phases.

1) Pre-Flow: Challenge Yourself

In order to achieve a flow state, you must first experience a phase of challenge and frustration. Without a high degree of mental exertion, your brain won’t release flow-inducing signals. For example, if your overall goal is to program a mobile app, the mentally taxing challenge you experience might be resolving a difficult bug in the code.

Kotler insists that these feelings of frustration and stress are not only normal, but necessary. Unlike other pleasurable mental states you might experience while, for instance, eating food or relaxing to music, flow only occurs when you’re pushing yourself to new limits.

(Shortform note: The authors of Make It Stick agree with Kotler on the importance of struggling with a challenge, explaining that [the harder your brain works, the deeper it stores the information that it...

The Rise of Superman Summary Ways to Encourage Flow

Although learning to achieve more flow in your life is a process, there are strategies that make it easier to enter a flow state. Taking a break from a challenging task is one we've already talked about. Once you’re ready to return to the challenging task, try seeking engaging environments, setting focused challenges, developing a growth mindset, and finding a community.

Method 1: Seek Engaging Environments

Seek an environment that activates your senses—one that is new, unpredictable, and stimulating. Kotler explains that when you’re in an unfamiliar environment, you naturally pay more attention to your surroundings because new situations contain more risks to your well-being. We’ve evolved to be highly attuned to such threats, which prompt our brains to release neurotransmitters that give us energy and focus. This means that when your surroundings are new and uncertain, focus comes more readily.

For example, if you’re a student, consider doing schoolwork in a library you rarely go to. The unfamiliar people and surroundings might make you feel more energized and focused than your usual study spot.

(Shortform note: Other experts agree with Kotler’s suggestion to...

The Rise of Superman Summary The Impact of Flow

Now that you understand how flow works and how you can unlock this state of mind, let’s discuss the broader implications of pursuing flow.

According to Kotler, while flow is a powerful tool for growth and improvement, it has its downsides as well. By enhancing your ability to perform, flow encourages you to work at and push beyond your limits. Then, when you’ve achieved your most ambitious goal, you’re likely going to set even more ambitious ones.

(Shortform note: While setting ambitious goals may sound like a good thing, psychologists warn that pursuing extremely ambitious goals can also be risky. One study suggests that flow reduces your awareness of risk in the pursuit of goals. This can be especially dangerous for people who are new to an activity, as they might underestimate risks and lack the expert skills to overcome them.)

When this happens, Kotler warns that there’s a risk of burning out or raising expectations so high that they become unwise or even dangerous to pursue. The world of extreme sports is full of such examples, with many athletes pushing themselves past their limits to the point of injury and even death....

Shortform Exercise: Set Your Challenging Yet Achievable Goal

According to Kotler, we can encourage flow by setting challenging yet achievable goals that we’re passionate about. Let’s practice creating a flow-inducing goal.

Think about a broad goal that you’re passionate about. What personally motivates you to achieve this goal? For example, your broad goal might be to become a concert pianist because you enjoy making others happy through your music.