TEDx: You're Already Awesome. Just Get Out of Your Own Way.

Overview

We have all experienced moments where everything comes together in some almost magical way — whether playing music, participating in a sport, or getting totally absorbed in a project. These moments are timeless, effortless, completely free of worry, and deeply satisfying. As described by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, this is “flow” and is often a hallmark of exemplary performance — whether it is Michael Jordan scoring 50 points in a basketball game, or someone rising to a challenge they never thought they could handle.

We are lucky if we get into this flow state a few times in our entire lives. But is it really that hard to achieve? Is flow more accessible than we think? And are we the only barrier keeping ourselves from getting there?

Key Concepts from the Talk

In this TEDx talk, Dr. Jud outlines several common ways we get in our own way. Using examples such as Lolo Jones tripping on a hurdle in the 2008 Beijing Olympics and smokers resisting their cravings, he describes how we get caught up in habit loops and overthinking, as well as resisting our own body sensations — all of which prevent us from performing optimally in whatever situation arises.

Dr. Jud’s clinical research has found that techniques designed to help us get out of our own way — such as mindfulness exercises — can produce large effects. In a randomized controlled clinical trial for smoking cessation at the Yale University School of Medicine, Dr. Jud’s lab found that mindfulness training showed twice the quit rates compared to the American Lung Association’s Freedom From Smoking program.

Research Findings

Dr. Jud also describes the brain processes behind getting in our own way, which involve a network of brain regions dubbed the “default mode network” because of how often it gets activated — for example, when we are regretting something we did in the past or worrying about something in the future.

His neuroimaging research at Yale University using experienced meditators found that a key region of the default mode network, the posterior cingulate cortex (PCC), gets deactivated during meditation. This work suggests that the PCC may be a key brain marker for both getting in our own way and stepping out of it.

Key Takeaways

• Flow is blocked by self-interference: We do not lack the ability to achieve flow — we actively prevent it through habit loops, overthinking, and resistance to present-moment experience.
• Mindfulness outperforms willpower: Clinical trials show mindfulness-based approaches produced 2x the quit rates of standard treatment in smoking cessation, demonstrating that getting out of your own way works better than forcing change.
• The default mode network drives self-interference: The PCC — the brain’s “getting in your own way” center — lights up during rumination and worry, and quiets during meditation and curiosity.
• fMRI neurofeedback can train flow: Dr. Jud unveils a real-time fMRI neurofeedback tool that can track and potentially accelerate training of the flow state by giving people direct feedback on their PCC activity.

Related Resources

• A simple way to break bad habits — Dr. Jud’s main TED talk
• What is the habit loop?
• Mindfulness exercises
• Curiosity as a superpower
• The Craving Mind — Dr. Jud’s book on the neuroscience of addiction