Finding the Zone

In the zone--not just zoning-out--is a great place to be. Whether the zone experience happens in our work or play, it is where our best stuff flows together and we find powerful motivation to keep improving. But, knowing the power and deep satisfaction of the zone experience, we have to wonder why we don't get there more often--and why those of us who supervise, teach, coach, and nurture others are not more successful in helping them get there. In this fascinating exploration of mind and motivation, the author shows that the main barrier is the deep-seated, conventional assumption that we are born with unformed, unorganized minds in need of structure supplied by good parents and teachers. He highlights the work of current researchers who have documented that babies are born with investigative minds that are already exquisitely organized to make sense of the world and to take the initiative to figure out ways to get their world to be responsive to their needs. When we ignore this fact and treat people as if their minds were blank slates, as we so typically do in schools and the workplace, we can't help them find the zone. The author goes on to describe how this inborn mental organization comes in different patterns, different mind-sets, each with its own motivational structure and its own zone-precipitating conditions. Understanding these life-long motivation patterns and the zone phenomenon are the keys to better teaching, supervision and parenting. Drawing on the work of many researchers and using illustrations from schools and the workplace, the author offers a fresh perspective and many practical guidelines for enhancing motivation.