Ready to supercharge your AI agents?

Install any skill in seconds. Free to start, no credit card required.

Flow Theory · asgard-ai-platform | DecimalAI

productivityby asgard-ai-platform

Flow Theory

asgard-ai-platform/grad-flow

Source asgard-ai-platform/skills ↗License MIT

Apply flow theory to diagnose optimal experience conditions and design environments that balance challenge and skill for sustained engagement.

SkillScore91Maintained

Automatic

Design & UX Review pack

Last verified 8/28/2026

What it changes

Passed 21 of 23 test cases with the skill, and 13 of 23 without it.

Without skill57%

With skill91%

Checks it passed that the model alone missed

Includes the section header '### Precondition Check'.
Uses the section header starting with '## Flow Analysis:'
Includes the subsection header '### Current State Diagnosis'.

and 8 more in the full report

8 fixed13 passed either way2 still failing0 broke

Pass-rate lift: +35 pp
Tokens: +26%
Agent turns: 0%
Response time: -17%

Model gemini-3.6-flashMeasured 8/28/2026v121 of 23 cases passed with skill

Tokens, turns and time describe resource use, not a dollar price.

Use this skill

Save it into your project's skills folder. Claude Code picks it up in its next session.

curl -fsSL --create-dirs -o .claude/skills/asgard-ai-platform-grad-flow/SKILL.md https://app.decimal.ai/s/asgard-ai-platform-grad-flow/SKILL.md

Want it pinned and updatable? pip install "decimalai>=0.15", then decimalai skills add asgard-ai-platform-grad-flow, and start Claude Code with claude --plugin-dir "$(git rev-parse --show-toplevel)/.agents"

1 · One-time — install the CLI (docs ↗)

pip install "decimalai>=0.15"

2 · Get the skill — writes .agents/skills/asgard-ai-platform-grad-flow/ and pins it in .decimal/skills.lock

decimalai skills add asgard-ai-platform-grad-flow

No CLI? Get the same file — curl · raw file

curl -fsSL --create-dirs -o .claude/skills/asgard-ai-platform-grad-flow/SKILL.md https://app.decimal.ai/s/asgard-ai-platform-grad-flow/SKILL.md

Raw file: /s/asgard-ai-platform-grad-flow/SKILL.md ↗ · machine-readable summary at /s/asgard-ai-platform-grad-flow.json ↗

Safety checks: 3 of 3 passed

Code scan CleanIntent PassedContent Clean

See it in action

One of 8 test cases the skill fixed. Same model, same prompt, with and without the skill.

1 of 8

Prompt

During an agile coding session, developers have their screen video recorded live and continuously graded by an offshore management team observing every keystroke. Developers report feeling intense self-consciousness and inability to focus on problem solving. Identify the flow blocker.

What was checked, without and with the skill
Checked	Without skill	With skill
Identifies external evaluation pressure and heightened self-consciousness as severe flow blockers.	Passed	Passed
Recommends removing high-stakes real-time surveillance to allow autonomy and focus.	Missed	Passed

case-21 · gemini-3.6-flash · 8/28/2026 · answers are capped and redacted

What's inside

The instructions your model reads when the skill loads.

SKILL.md110 linessingle file

Flow Theory

Overview

Flow theory (Csikszentmihalyi, 1990) describes a psychological state of complete absorption in an activity where a person's skills are fully engaged by a commensurate challenge. Flow occurs in a narrow channel between anxiety (challenge exceeds skill) and boredom (skill exceeds challenge), requiring clear goals, immediate feedback, and a perceived skill-challenge balance.

When to Use

Diagnosing why users or learners disengage (boredom) or quit (anxiety/frustration)
Designing difficulty curves in learning systems, games, or productivity tools
Evaluating workplace conditions for sustained deep work
Structuring tasks to maximize intrinsic motivation and performance

When NOT to Use

When disengagement is caused by external factors (compensation, politics) rather than task design
For tasks that are inherently routine and cannot be meaningfully restructured
As a universal productivity prescription — flow is state-dependent, not always achievable or desirable

Assumptions

IRON LAW: Flow occurs ONLY when perceived challenge matches
perceived skill — too easy breeds boredom, too hard breeds
anxiety. Both dimensions are SUBJECTIVE perceptions, not
objective measurements.

Key assumptions:

Flow is autotelic — the activity becomes intrinsically rewarding, independent of external outcomes
Clear proximal goals and immediate feedback are necessary preconditions, not optional enhancements
The flow channel is dynamic — as skill grows, challenge must escalate to maintain the balance

Methodology

Step 1 — Map the Skill-Challenge Space

Plot the target activity on the experience quadrant:

Track record

Benchmark

21 / 23

test cases passed, vs 13 / 23 without

Adoption

Users: 0
Times used: 0

Safety and source details

SkillSafety

✓ 3 of 3 passed

Code scan15 of 15 checks clean

0 critical · 0 warning · 0 info — scanner v4 — 8/3/2026

View 15 scanner checks

live_secretremote_code_executionreverse_shelldata_exfiltrationssrf_metadataagent_snoopinganti_refusaldestructive_commandsobfuscated_unicodeunicode_homoglyphopaque_blobsuspicious_urltool_overreachtrigger_abuseprompt_injection_phrasing

IntentSafe

LLM judge · does the skill do what it claims

ContentClean

LLM judge · policy & harmful-content review

Source

Imported

asgard-ai-platform / skills

grad-flow/SKILL.md

View on GitHub ↗

License MITImported 8/3/2026Version v1

More skills from the same source and nearby in the registry, with their headline benchmark lift.

Ready to supercharge your AI agents?

See it in action

What's inside

Flow Theory

Overview

When to Use

When NOT to Use

Assumptions

Methodology

Step 1 — Map the Skill-Challenge Space

Track record

Benchmark

Adoption

SkillSafety

Source

Related skills