The germ of an idea doesn't make the sculpture that stands up... so the next stage is hard work Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi More Quotes by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi More Quotes From Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi If an enterprise does not aspire to be the best of its kind, it will attract second-rate employees, and it will be soon forgotten. Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi kindforgottendoe As long as we respond predictably to what feels good and what feels bad, it is easy for others to exploit our preferences for their own ends. Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi feel-goodeasylong Through learning we grow, becoming more than we were before, and in that sense learning is unselfish, because it results in the transformation of what we were before, a setting aside of the old self in favor of a more complex one. Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi learningbusinessself Find a way to express what moves you. Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi expressionwaymoving Try to be surprised by something every day. Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi trying Often we don't have a good notion of what our talents are, because we have never had a chance to try them out. Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi talentchancetrying 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 churchagreementmind The psychic entropy peculiar to the human condition involves seeing more to do than one can actually accomplish and feeling able to accomplish more than what conditions allow. Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi psychicspeculiarfeelings Repeatedly we question the necessity of our actions and evaluate critically the reasons for carrying them out. But in flow there is no need to reflect, because the action carries us forward as if by magic. Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi our-actionsmagicneeds I think that evolution has had a hand in selecting people who had a sense of doing something beyond themselves. Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi handspeoplethinking When a religion or ideology becomes dominant, the lack of controls will result in widening spirals of license leading to degradation and corruption. Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi spiralsdegradationcorruption Why is it that, despite having achieved previously undreamed-of miracles of progress, we seem more helpless in facing life than our less privileged ancestors were? The answer seems clear: while humankind collectively has increased its material powers a thousandfold, it has not advanced very far in terms of improving the content of experience. Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi progressmiracleanswers We have all experienced times when, instead of being buffeted by anonymous forces, we do feel in control of our actions, masters of our own fate. On the rare occasions that it happens, we feel a sense of exhilaration. Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi rare-occasionfatedestiny To be overcome with the ultimate goal often interferes with performance. Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi performancesgoalovercoming 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 everydayexcellencereality A Web site that promotes flow is like a gourmet meal. You start off with the appetizers, move on to the salads and entrees, and build toward dessert. Unfortunately, most sites are built like a cafeteria. You pick whatever you want. That sounds good at first, but soon it doesn't matter what you choose to do. Everything is bland and the same. Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi gourmetsoundmoving A Web site that promotes flow is like a gourmet meal. You start off with the appetizers, move on to the salads and entrees, and build toward dessert. Unfortunately, most sites are built like a cafeteria. You pick whatever you want. That sounds good at first, but soon it doesn't matter what you choose to do. Everything is bland and the same. Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi gourmetsoundmoving The most important step in emancipating oneself from social controls is the ability to find rewards in the events of each moment. Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi rewardseventsimportant If we are so rich, why aren't we happy? Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi prosperityrichifs We cannot deny the facts of nature, but we should certainly try to improve on them. Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi denytryingfacts
