Flow—your brain's gateway drug to the infinite game.

How far could you push your performance if you knew exactly what your brain was capable of?

In this special Ask Me Anything episode, Steven Kotler and Dr. Michael Mannino answer questions from people around the world who use their work to unlock more flow. They share mind-bending insights about "getting into the zone"—insights that have helped world-class athletes and entrepreneurs break through their perceived limitations.

Through candid stories and cutting-edge research, they show exactly how anyone can tap into these optimal states of consciousness—whether you're hurling yourself down mountains or seeking deeper connections in your everyday life.

The question isn't whether you can access these states. The question is: what will you do once you know how?

Warning: Side effects include the uncontrollable drive to truly live your life.

In This Episode:

01:01 Endurance & Scripting

20:27 Clear Goals: Risk vs. Reward

29:00 ADHD, Flow States, and Peak Performance

41:00 Neurodivergence Debate: Rethinking Labels

49:19 Flow States in Healing and Therapy

54:54 Teacher-Student Flow Dynamics

1:00:04 Psychoneuroimmunology and Healing

1:03:04 Individual vs. Group Flow States

1:07:36 Closing Remarks and Holiday Wishes

About The Guest:

Steven Kotler is a New York Times-bestselling author, an award-winning journalist, and the co-founder and executive director of the Flow Research Collective. He is one of the world’s leading experts on human performance. He is the author of eleven bestsellers (out of fourteen books), including The Art of Impossible, The Future is Faster Than You Think, Stealing Fire, The Rise of Superman, Bold and Abundance. His work has been nominated for three Pulitzer Prizes, translated into over sixty languages, and has appeared in over 110 publications, including academic journals such as Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews and Psychophysiology, and mainstream publications like The New York Times Magazine, Wired, Atlantic Monthly, Wall Street Journal, TIME, and the Harvard Business Review.

Dr. Michael Mannino is the Director of Programs at the University of Miami's Institute for Data Science and Computing, focusing on AI projects across various domains. He holds a Ph.D. in neuroscience and a Master’s in philosophy, with expertise in embodied cognition, critical thinking, and the philosophy of mind. As a professor of philosophy and ethics for over a decade, Michael integrates his academic background with a passion for peak performance, flow science, and the mind-body connection. He is also an athlete, musician, and avid learner, and serves on the Singularity University Miami Chapter.

Episode Resources:

Paper: A framework for neurophysiological experiments on flow states

Flow Radio Is Presented By Flow Research Collective

Flow Research Collective is a leading neuroscience research and training company. If you’re interested in learning the science-backed techniques we used to train top executives at Facebook, Audi and even the Navy SEALs, click the link here: https://www.flowresearchcollective.com

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Flow Research Collective was founded by Steven Kotler, one of the world’s leading experts on human peak performance. He is an award-winning journalist and author with over ten bestselling books.

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