Getting in the zone is the best feeling. Time seems to fly by, Twitter and Instagram fade away in your mind and you are one with your animation.

If this is the best thing ever, why can't you just jump into the flow?

What if I told you that you can train your brain to turn on the flow nearly like a light switch?

In his book Deep Work, Cal Newport talks about how today we are inundated like never before in human history with notifications, emails, Tweets, texts, reminders, co-workers, bosses, pets (the list literally goes on forever). We are so connected with everything and everyone all the time that we have lost the ability to focus.

In meditation, you focus on your breath. It's ok if distracting thoughts come in, but the goal is to refocus whenever this happens. Always going back to focusing on your breath.

The same is true for building your ability to get in the zone. Every time you feel the tug of a distraction and resist it, you are building a stronger brain "muscle" so that it gets easier and easier to resist.

After a while, you can build a habit of getting in the zone multiple times every day. That is the ultimate dream, but first...

How to set yourself up for success

Start small
Give yourself 15 minutes
Put your phone in another room
Close all social media

Every time you get bored or distracted, just refocus on the one task at hand. Don't beat yourself up when you mess up. Just like any skill, it takes intentional practice over time to get really good at it.

Pro tip:

Do not try to do a 90 minute deep works session first try. It will feel like torture... and that's not the point. Work up to 90 minutes (which is pretty much the limit according to Newport).