What is the value of being in flow?

At Bioss SA, we deliver consulting and services aimed at keeping people in flow, i.e. any action that serves to ensure that individuals are placed in, or prepared for roles that suit their unique constellation of knowledge, capability, and attributes, both now and in the future. A state of flow is one in which the individual feels optimally challenged by their work.

When individuals have outgrown their roles, the result is boredom and potentially a lack of energy and attention. When individuals are overstretched, a situation of anxiety and stress arises due to being asked to perform work which is too complex, and this could result in poor decision making.

Practically, however, situations also arise where an individual is ostensibly required to focus on one theme of work complexity (and would be in flow with this), but the job and context demand a focus on a less complex theme of work. These situations are unfortunately all too common and can lead to less-than-optimal performance. We recently encountered an example of this from a candidate whose response has been anonymised below:

“In my role I am expected to focus on general management, and consider the best way that we can operationalise and achieve our strategic goals. However, recently we introduced a new system, and for almost a year this project dominated my attention and energy. Despite my requesting a Project Manager for this exercise, I was told there was no budget. Every day had a new crisis, and I spent the better part of 6 months doing daily fire-fighting. I last did this kind of work more than 5 years ago, and after a while I could feel my attention ebbing away from this; it took continuous effort to stay focused, and this was both frustrating and exhausting. I felt like I was neglecting the other really important part of my work, but I barely had time to even really think about what that might be. Once we neared the implementation phase, sanity prevailed and a Project Manager was appointed. It felt like a tremendous weight had been lifted off my shoulders, and for the first time in a long time I felt like I could breathe. At this point I realised how much I had placed “on ice” as I did not have the capacity to attend to it. With a clearer headspace, I was able to re-evaluate the context of my work and focus on the broader canvas. It felt like picking up the reins again on a familiar but challenging horse. At this stage, the full extent of my neglect became apparent to me, and I had to re-orientate my attention towards the real purpose of my work “

The above situation demonstrates the consequences and risks for performance when individuals are forced to focus on work that does not keep them in flow. Typically, we find these situations arising through resource constraints (insufficient resources at the level below), and sometimes this also occurs following a restructuring exercise. The risk here is that Senior managers would be forced to focus on the trees as opposed to the forest. Ultimately, when the work being neglected is more complex, it will take much longer before the negative consequences of this are felt. In addition, individuals placed in these situations are far more likely to represent a retention risk if the situation endures for too long.

In order to avoid these situations, organisations can utilise the framework of Levels of Work complexity to ensure that they are clear about which theme of work complexity is required within a role. In addition, conducting a Levels of Work Audit would assist in ensuring that the actual work is structured in a such a way that the individual’s attention is focused on adding value in this theme of complexity.

For more information on how to help your employees achieve and maintain a state of Flow, please email info@bioss.com.