Quote

I have a naive trust in the universe - that at some level it all makes sense, and we can get glimpses of that sense if we try.

Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi

Change background

T
T
T

Change font

TAGS & TOPICS

Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
Age: 90
Born: 1934
Born: September 29
Professor
Psychiatrist
Psychologist
University Teacher
Fiume
Glimpse
Level
Trust
Levels
Universe
Sense
Makes
Glimpses
Trying
Naive

More quotes by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi

Image
Whether we like it or not, each of us is constrained by limits on what we can do and feel. To ignore these limits leads to denial and eventually to failure. To achieve excellence, we must first understand the reality of the everyday, with all its demands
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
Image
How we feel about ourselves, the joy we get from living, ultimately depends directly on how the mind filters and interprets everyday experiences. Whether we are happy depends on inner harmony, not on the controls we are able to exert over the great forces of the universe.
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
Image
Perform with elan, brilliance and dash - at concert pitch.
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
Image
For a person to become deeply involved in any activity it is essential that he knows precisely what tasks he must accomplish, moment by moment.
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
Image
Other things equal, a life filled with complex flow activities is more worth living than one spent consuming passive entertainment.
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
Image
It is essential to learn to enjoy life. It really does not make sense to go through the motions of existence if one does not appreciate as much of it as possible.
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
Image
Creative individuals tend to be smart, yet also naive at the same time... Creative individuals have a combination of playfulness and discipline, or responsibility and irresponsibility.
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
Image
It is not the hearing that improves life, but the listening.
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
Image
Creative individuals are more likely to have not only the strengths of their own gender but those of the other one, too.
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
Image
Competition is an easy way to get into flow.
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
Image
I think that evolution has had a hand in selecting people who had a sense of doing something beyond themselves.
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
Image
To be creative, a person has to internalize the entire system that makes creativity possible. Creative individuals are remarkable for their ability to adapt to almost any situation and to make do with whatever is at hand to reach their goals.
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
Image
The mood state Americans are in, on average, when watching television is mildly depressed.
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
Image
Goals transform a random walk into a chase.
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
Image
..Such practices and beliefs, which interfere with happiness, are neither inevitable nor necessary they evolved by chance, as a result of random responses to accidental conditions. But once they become part of the norms and habits of a culture, people assume that this is how things must be they come to believe they have no other options.
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
Image
Those who seek consolation in existing churches often pay for their peace of mind with a tacit agreement to ignore a great deal of what is known about the way the world works.
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
Image
There are two main strategies we can try to improve the quality of life. The first is to try making external conditions match our goals. The second is to change how we experience external conditions to make them fit our goals better.
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
Image
If you're alone with nothing to do, the quality of your experience really plummets.
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
Image
The best moments in our lives are not the passive, receptive, relaxing times...the best moments usually occur when a person's body or mind is stretched to it's limited in voluntary effort to accomplish something difficult and worthwhile.
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
Image
Flow is the process of achieving happiness through control over one's inner life. The optimal state of inner experience is order in consciousness. This happens when we focus our attention (psychic energy) on realistic goals and when our skills match the challenges we face.
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi