How to Add More Fun to Your Life Today
Women have fought endlessly to be taken seriously in the workplace and in leadership roles. Yet in a recent poll we hosted onLinkedIn, 50% of respondents said that the thing they most need right now is more fun. We imagine that you, like the rest of us, can quickly think of many, many reasons why fun has to wait. But why wait until vacation to have fun? In this article, you will learn how to add more fun to your life today.
Our natural instinct is often to delay ‘having fun’ until the ‘right’ time. Our to-do list needs to be done. A presentation needs to be created. Someone in our family is sick. The dog has to go to the vet. We just got bad news. The state of the world isn’t conducive of fun.
Left unchecked, our inner dialogue, our habits, our priorities, and our expectations of ourselves will inhibit fun. We’ll save it for that monthly night out or annual vacation. We’ll put it off until after the laundry is done and the next client contract is signed.
Yet both science and our intuition feel differently. Scientifically speaking, there is evidence that playfulness and fun decrease stress and anxiety while improving sleep, brain function, idea generation, and more. Intuitively, we are longing for laughter, lightness, goofiness, and letting go.
How do we do it? How can you add more fun to your life today.? Get started with these three steps.
1) Identify Your Fun Blockers.
Is it your time commitment? Is it your to-list? Is it because you know others are struggling or suffering right now? Naming what’s stopping you makes it visible. Making it visible gives you some choice. Once you identify your fun blockers, ask yourself: When I look back on my life, what will I regret? Not finishing today’s action items or not having fun?
2) Remember What You Think Is Fun.
Fun is personal. One might like going dancing. Another might like reading a novel in the park. Yet another person might like cooking a special dinner. Ask yourself: What makes me feel playful and lighthearted? What brings me joy and makes me laugh? What raises my spirits? What unhooks me from my constant mental flow of thoughts and connects me to the beauty of this present moment?
Please don’t panic if you don’t know what’s fun for you. This is a very common occurrence right now. Consider setting the goal lower. If fun seems like a stretch, focus on enjoyment, relaxation, or gratitude. You might keep a journal or notepad where you capture moments of fun or playfulness to reference.
Avoid mistaking unconscious ways of numbing the mind as true fun. Yes, binging TV shows and having an end-of-day glass of wine can be true self-expressions and completely acceptable fun times. However, supplement those choices with additional, fresh activities that focus on sparking energy and playfulness instead of decompressing.
3) Choose Something. Do Something.
Then choose it and do it! Work remotely in a hammock in the park. Purchase a pair of vintage roller skates. Sign up for a painting class. Make a dance party playlist for breaks at work.
Challenge yourself to choose something easy and accessible so you can do it without delay and add more fun to your life today. Invite others to have fun with you. Put fun in your calendar so you have the time and space set aside.
Once you know what would add more fun to your life today and begin to integrate it into your routine, you will naturally bring it to others, even in the workplace. Consider asking what others do for fun as a team bonding question. Host a fun work-appropriate lunch hour or break. Role model for the people you manage how work and play can feed off of each other, creating an integrated, balanced, happy, healthy, creative, and enjoyable workplace.
About the Author
Betsy Sobiech, a Lead True Global Leader, is an expert in organization development, human behavior, training, systems thinking, communications and coaching.
Betsy has worked with organizations such as Exxon Mobil Aviation, Hewitt Associates, Nicor Gas, Clearbrook, Center for Sight and Hearing, Mercy Home for Boys and Girls, St. Gregory the Great High School, Standard Parking, Allstate, McDonald’s, Mesirow Financial, and PepsiCo.
Read more from Betsy Sobiech below.
In Tiara, we work with the concept of generating clarity in our lives. Over the years, we have worked with thousands of women helping them get clear about what they truly desire.