In the inaugural webinar for the ‘Summer of Flow 2023‘ series, Chris Heuer and Jaime Schwarz embarked on an exploration of the transformative concept of team flow. As you can discover yourself in the video below, they shared insights on how team flow can unlock peak performance and innovation for remote teams. And a lot more…
Drawing from research by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi and Jef van den Hout, Chris and Jaime explained the collective state of flow that aligns team members in complete focus and engagement. They discussed prerequisites for fostering states of flow and benefits like psychological safety, mutual trust, creativity, and momentum.
The webinar also provided an overview of plans for the Team Flow Institute to take us beyond ‘business as usual’ and manifest a new world of ‘business as possible’. This includes the continuation of their mission to map protocols and rituals that enable the flow state in different kinds of teams, situations, and industries.
Watch the full webinar replay on YouTube now to learn about this exciting new framework for unlocking collective performance, purpose, and potential. Then join our community to continue the conversation and help shape the future of teamwork.
Join the Team Flow Movement this Summer
This summer, join the Team Flow Institute community to learn how achieving team flow can enable better collaboration and unlock human potential. Sign up for future events and join in for open office hours via https://teamflow.institute/events/
What is Team Flow?
Team flow is a shared state of complete focus, alignment, and engagement that builds on Mihály Csíkszentmihályi’s concept of Flow as a state of optimal experience. Jeff van den Hout expanded on this work, applying it to teams. He has developed substantial research that shows how the pursuit of a collective ambition creates the conditions for team flow.
We seek to expand on this, particularly in understanding how to facilitate team flow in remote and hybrid work environments. This moment also requires us to address how we can leverage artificial intelligence to augment our collaboration, and reshape how we work together, wherever we might be in the world.
The weekly webinars explain how this leads to momentum, creativity, and connection. Team flow goes beyond individual productivity to generate communal energy and performance – like a basketball team in sync or jazz musicians improvising together.
The Role of a Team Flow Facilitator
Autonomy, trust and clarity empower people more than oversight. Project managers, coaches, and team leads can all help facilitate team flow focused collaboration with AI tools that augment instead of replaces humanity.
A great team flow facilitator will oversee the clarification and alignment of team members around our version of Simon Sinek’s “Golden Circle”. Simon advocates starting with “why” and expanding through how and what. We go a step further in taking a holistic look at developing a “Culture Plan”, which maps our protocols for collaboration designed to cultivate team flow, to include “who”.
A team flow facilitator guides alignment around objectives using protocols mapped to each team’s needs. This draws on pastoral skills like deep listening, conflict resolution, and supporting professional development paths.
Creating a Positive Team Environment
Google’s Aristotle Project and Brene Brown’s Dare to Lead show that respect, trust, and appreciation create healthy team dynamics. The Team Flow Institute recommends these practices, especially public recognition, gratitude games, and working out loud. Embracing transparency through all digital workspaces, and meeting mindfully with clear agendas is of utmost importance.
We believe that gratitude and recognition are the key accelerants of team flow in remote environments, and when properly activated for an enrolled team, may just replace that in person energy that everyone craves when we are shoulder to shoulder in the same physical space.
Get Involved this Summer!
Join our free community, participate in our Discord server, join our free webinars, and participate in weekly office hours with our leadership and leading thinkers/doers from around the world. Subscribe to our newsletter and stay tuned for details on the upcoming fall training program, which focuses on experimentation and practical applications in your professional leadership capacity. Continue the conversation and help shape the future of team collaboration, and get in the flow!
