Introduction

Have you ever been so absorbed in creating that the world fades away? This is flow, a state of pure focus and joy that Dr. Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi (CHICK-sent-mee-HIGH) described as key to a fulfilling life.¹ His research, alongside artists’ habits in Daily Rituals: How Artists Work, reveals how rituals spark creativity. At Stoica, we believe intentional habits and the placebo effect can unlock this creative zone for anyone. Stoica’s FLOW is crafted to ignite your potential. In this 5-minute read, we’ll dive into Csikszentmihalyi’s flow stages, explore artists’ morning routines, and show how FLOW’s ritual can help you thrive creatively.

Flow’s Six Stages and Artists’ Rituals

Dr. Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi defined flow as a state where “you’re so involved in what you’re doing that nothing else matters."¹ It involves six stages: intense concentration on the present, merging of action and awareness, loss of self-consciousness, sense of control, distorted time, and intrinsic reward.² These create a creative sweet spot, balanced between challenge and skill. Daily Rituals: How Artists Work shows how artists’ habits foster these stages.³ Novelist Haruki Murakami rises at 4 a.m., runs 10 kilometers to focus his mind, then writes for five hours, merging action and awareness as time slips away. Painter Georgia O’Keeffe walked New Mexico’s desert at sunrise, sketching landscapes to inspire her abstract art, finding intrinsic joy in the process.³

Makers like furniture craftsman Thomas Moser also embody flow. Moser begins mornings hand-sanding wood for 30 minutes in his Maine workshop, feeling the grain to center himself before designing chairs, achieving intense concentration and control.³ Stoica’s FLOW mirrors these rituals with a placebo-driven approach: take two capsules, set an intention like “I’m ready to create,” and journal an idea. This echoes Murakami’s running or Moser’s sanding, fostering focus and self-forgetfulness. For example, journaling with FLOW can distort time, like O’Keeffe’s immersive sketching. Studies show rituals boost task adherence: when you create consistent conditions surrounding activities, you are encouraging long-term habit building.⁴ The placebo effect amplifies this—belief in your ritual strengthens focus, supporting flow’s intrinsic reward. Whether writing, painting, or crafting, FLOW helps you enter flow’s six stages. What ritual could ignite your creativity?Creativity Through Rituals and Belief

Csikszentmihalyi’s flow theory, with its six stages, shows creativity thrives in immersive moments of joy and meaning.¹ Daily Rituals illustrates this: Murakami’s running sparks concentration, O’Keeffe’s walks inspire control, and Moser’s sanding merges action and awareness.³ These habits align with positive psychology’s focus on fulfillment. The placebo effect enhances this–placebos can reduce stress by triggering endorphins through belief. Pairing this with a ritual, like using FLOW, reinforces flow’s stages, making creativity feel effortless.

Stoica’s FLOW is designed to anchor such habits. Its ritual: two capsules, a deep breath, an intention, mimics artists’ disciplined routines. Just as Moser’s sanding signals focus, FLOW cues your brain to enter flow. Imagine starting your day like O’Keeffe, with a ritual that sparks inspiration, or like Murakami, losing yourself in creation. FLOW leverages Csikszentmihalyi’s principles and placebo-driven belief to empower consistent creativity, whether you’re designing, writing, or crafting. By blending flow’s six stages, artists’ rituals, and the power of belief, FLOW unlocks a life of creative fulfillment.

Call-to-Action

Ready to thrive with Stoicism?  Try GRIT, SHIFT, FLOW—$39.99 each or $99 Thrive Stack ($89/month sub). Start a ritual: 2 capsules, set an intention, own your response.

Works Cited

1. Csikszentmihalyi, Mihaly. “Flow, the Secret to Happiness.” TED, www.ted.com/talks/mihaly_csikszentmihalyi_flow_the_secret_to_happiness. Accessed 31 May 2025.
2. Csikszentmihalyi, M. (1990). Flow: The psychology of optimal experience. Harper & Row.
3. Currey, M. (2013). Daily Rituals: How Artists Work. Knopf.
4. Wood, W., & Rünger, D. (2016). Psychology of habit. Annual Review of Psychology, 67, 289-314. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-psych-122414-033417