Conversation

Andy Matuschak
@andy_matuschak
I've noticed that consciousness recedes when I'm deep in a coding phase, many back-to-back days in flow. My mind narrows to tunnel-vision, fixated on the software and its issues. My sense of self shrinks; non-code ideas cease to arise; I get less curious; writing yields little.
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Andy Matuschak
@andy_matuschak
It's an odd feeling: flow is experientially satisfying, but the creeping self-abnegation is worrying. I also notice it takes quite a while to "reset" from this phase, to start hearing myself think again, to feel like less of an automaton.
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Robert Haisfield 🤔🔎🤯🔁
@RobertHaisfield
Yeah I struggle to get into a flow state without some level of creativity in the task. That may be because my general approach to creativity is through shutting off my inner critic and coming up with sheer quantity to narrow down later.