The Rise of Superman: Decoding the Science of Ultimate Human Performance

by Steven Kotler

Mike Gervais,

abeyance

The events that earned Heim this distinction took place just above treeline, at the point where the Santis’ verdant lower flanks give way to an enormous blade of rock.

massif,

anomalous

“Most people live in a very restricted circle of their potential being. They make use of a very small portion of their possible consciousness, and of their soul’s resources in general, much like a man who, out of his whole organism, should get into a habit of using and moving only his little finger.”

but that amplified creativity outlasts the zone.

T]he true challenge is how you continue doing it, after you’ve ridden the biggest wave, crossed the longest distance. You set up challenges that are more than what you ever did before. And by getting through it, you get the sensation you’ve completed something. And if it’s dangerous, then other things that scare you, the experience will strengthen you for those situations.”

Free soloing is the mother of all death sports. The equation is simple: you fall, you die. It is also, at least for a certain breed of athlete, deeply pure and undeniably enticing.

His body was pretty destroyed—again he didn’t notice. Instead, his focus was entirely on the ground beside him, where a small swift with a broken wing lay dying. Instinctively, Potter picked up the bird, cradling it in his shredded palms. The connection was immediate. As soon as their flesh touched, he felt a powerful psychic union, as if his consciousness had merged with the bird’s consciousness. In that instant, they were no longer two wounded creatures: they had become one stronger animal.

“I know it’s hard to believe,” says Potter, “but the experience was so powerful, the connection so true. I just sat there with that bird, holding it while it died. When it died, I died with it. And I don’t mean

that

metaphorically, I mean I became that...

terminal velocity,

Correct predictions result in understanding.

Incorrect predictions result in confusion and prompt you to pay attention.

We are making continuous low-level predictions in parallel across all our senses.

brain guesses correctly—

brain’s pattern-recognition system identifies a correct pattern—

noticing patterns actually prepares the brain to notice more patterns.

Neurons that fire together wire together.

Mike Swanson’s

JT Holmes.

when JT’s heal twitches slightly left and down, he’s a second away from initiating a steep dive.

Swanson

Hol...

Flow turns predictive pattern recognition into full-blown ESP.

neurochemistry,

macroscopic perspective.

triumvirate

approach—neuroelectricity,

neuroan...

neuroche...

caveats,

neurochemical systems

Neither was in the offing here.

neurochemical,

neuroelectrical,

neuroanatomical ...

Benjamin Bloom

Talent Project,

As individuals, Presents are creative, spontaneous, open-minded, high-energy risk takers who play sports, have hobbies, make friends easily, and find lovers often.

The optimal time perspective combines the energy, joy, and openness of Presents, with the strength, fortitude, and long-term vision of the Futures. But how to produce this blended perspective is the more important question.

Psychologists describe flow as “autotelic,”

These activities are intrinsically motivating, autotelic experiences done for their own sake. The high to end all highs.

“The person I became…was the best possible version of myself, the person I should have been throughout my life. No regrets, no hesitation; there were no false moves left in me. I really believe I could have hit a mosquito in the eye with a pine needle at thirty paces; I couldn’t miss because there was no such thing as a miss. It didn’t matter whether I fell or not, because I couldn’t fall, any more than two plus two can equal three.”

delineate

This is who we are and how we’re wired. Flow is our birthright.

Ammons’s desire for river intimacy is rooted in an even bigger desire: the deep ache to participate in the fundamental components of creation: elemental powers, eons of time.

The lover must lay bare his soul and risk rejection and humiliation to enter this state. The athlete must be willing to risk physical harm, even loss of life, to enter this state. The artist must be willing