How to experience the ultimate state of happiness while playing billiards
Years ago, I came across a book called "Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience" by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, and it had a profound impact on my approach to having fun. Recently, I've been revisiting the ideas from the book and pondering the perfect activities for experiencing peak enjoyment. It occurred to me that billiards and table tennis are close to the ideal choice, but not in a casual, haphazard way. I have a specific vision in mind. In this article, I'll share my thoughts on how games like table tennis and billiards can be played to maximize enjoyment.
First, let me briefly explain the concept of "flow." Flow is a state of consciousness where you become completely absorbed and fully immersed in a challenging and rewarding activity. When in flow, you're not dwelling on the past or worrying about the future; instead, you're wholly engaged in the present task. It's essentially a state of heightened human experience, so the more time you spend in flow, the better.
Billiards naturally lends itself to flow. When played right, it possesses all the qualities of an incredibly enjoyable activity. I believe there are specific ways to play the game that can make it significantly more enjoyable. Here are my ideas on how to maximize the sense of flow while playing billiards.
Deliberate practice: To experience flow, the challenge of the activity should match your skill level. If you're a beginner, pool can seem overwhelmingly difficult, hindering your ability to lose yourself in the game. However, deliberate practice, intentionally honing your skills, can lead to a state of flow. The practice itself can induce flow if you adjust the task difficulty to match your skill level.
Beginners often struggle because most shots are beyond their abilities, resulting in missed shots and frustration. That's why I advocate spending more time on practice drills. Repeating the same shot five times in a row offers more benefits than attempting five different shots. Each shot provides feedback that you can adjust and refine. It also helps to have a practice partner who can offer feedback on technique, ensuring you don't keep making the same mistakes unknowingly.
Play with a pool buddy: Ideal gameplay involves one or at most two other people. Having too many players means more waiting time, taking away from actual playing. I think it's important to find someone equally committed to improvement and roughly at the same skill level. This way, you can give each other feedback and share the enjoyment of mastering difficult shots. Your pool buddy should also be someone you feel comfortable with, creating a relaxed and fun atmosphere.
Set clear goals: Establishing clear goals or purposes for an activity helps focus attention and provides a sense of direction. The goals should be challenging yet achievable, broken down into manageable steps. Here's my idea on how to implement this in billiards:
Select ten standard shots that represent common challenges in the game.
Take each shot ten times, totaling 100 shots, and record your score out of 100.
Use this objective measure of progress to gauge improvement.
Regularly repeat the test to maintain a sense of progress.
Play in a comfortable environment: The physical environment can significantly impact your ability to experience flow. Creating a quiet, comfortable space free from distractions fosters focus and concentration. Here are a few suggestions:
Return to familiar spots where you feel comfortable.
Ensure you don't feel rushed.
Commit to a specific time period for playing to eliminate uncertainty about when the session will end, both within each practice session and overall.
Minimize distractions: To experience flow, it's essential to be fully present and engaged in the activity. This means letting go of distractions like social media, emails, or interruptions and dedicating your full attention to the practice session. Put your phone away and create an environment that isn't overly distracting.
End with a game: As a child, I remember my football coach reserving the last 20 minutes of each training session for a competitive game. I loved it! It felt like eagerly waiting for dessert after dinner. I propose adopting the same approach for billiards. Assuming you're practicing with a partner, dedicate the final 20 minutes of every training session to a competitive game.
Stop when you're still eager: After a lengthy training session, your motivation and energy naturally decline. This decline tends to cloud your overall impression of how enjoyable the activity was. To counter this, I suggest leaving a bit of energy in reserve. Personally, I find my energy waning after about two hours of pool. Therefore, I aim to practice for approximately one hour and thirty minutes, leaving me eager to continue playing the next time.
By following these guidelines, I believe you can enhance your experience of playing any game and find yourself consistently immersed in a state of flow. Give it a try and let me know how it goes!
