Making Room For Fun
It may feel like you’ve gone from going with the flow, to gasping for air in a tsunami, but are ‘to sink or swim’ the only two options available to you? What if you paddle to shore for a moment? Better yet, what if you grab that surfboard and ride the wave? This blog is about making fun a priority (even in difficult times), finding your inner child and giving yourself permission to take a break from all of the tiresome wading.
One minute you’re soothing a scraped knee, accepting a regrettable dare, and racing home before the streetlights come on, and the next, you’re applying for jobs, managing a team, raising a family and searching the shelves for Chestnut Brown Number Four to touch up your sprouting greys. It might bring you a sense of comfort to think back to a time in your life when the days felt longer, your hair colour was rich and your biggest fear was having to eat the brussel sprouts on your dinner plate. But what if you didn’t have to think back to a time when fun and ease were abundant? What if you could use these glorious days of old as a framework for achieving a greater sense of happiness right now? It is well known that adulting comes with daunting challenges and, in recent times, it may feel as if no one is adulting harder than you, but why does growing up have to mean that fun is no longer a necessary component of life? If anything, it has never been a more important time to break free from your workload, unplug from the distressing newscycle, and engage in an activity that sparks joy within you. This blog is about understanding the important role that fun plays in your wellness and finding ways to be reacquainted with your inner child. Please read on for a twelve step process on how to achieve fun. Just KID-ding!! Let’s skip the dissertation and keep this short and sweet so that we can both go out and have a good time!
Hide and Seek
So where did your inner child go? That playful, curious kid is somewhere hiding behind the to-do lists, the parental responsibilities and the internal pressure to brave the present storm. To this end, you’ve been working diligently to readjust your home and work life to suit the limitations of our current reality and, for that, you are to be warmly commended! But after creating a schedule for the children, remodelling your business plan and learning how to use a new social application for your regularly held meetings, isn’t it time you finally arranged to seek that inner child? Happiness is not a passive thing, rather, it is a mental state that must be yearned for, sought out, and attained by way of repeated effort. We all know that fun leads to a reduction of stress, a surge of serotonin, a boost in energy, a better night’s sleep, and an ability to better cope with daily challenges. So what’s the hold up? Well, for many, making room for pleasure, especially in a time of distress, is accompanied by feelings of guilt and fear; guilt that you are undeserving of levity and fear that your time would be better spent doing something more productive. But scratch that! A happy and healthy adult is a well-balanced adult and the first step to being well-balanced is identifying your needs and working toward satisfying them. As luck would have it, play, joy, humour and ease are all fundamental needs that are highly deserving of our attention.
Smashing Blocks
Can you think back to a time when you had an unabashed curiosity? A sense of fearlessness and disregard for the world’s judgments? Have you ever observed a child at play? All that children approach, they approach with a beginner’s mind, unafraid to make mistakes, not worried that they don’t already possess the answers. Children tend to sing like no one is listening, dance like no one is watching and they never equate productivity with a sense of worthiness. Make it your aim to regularly engage with your inner child and use curiosity as a tool to cultivate joy. To really enjoy yourself, you must quiet the part of your brain that is telling you that to have fun is to be irresponsible. Let be all of the things you either cannot control or have already acknowledged. If even for just a moment, set aside your other responsibilities and give yourself permission to laugh, be silly, and create something wonderful. No matter what shape fun takes on for you–be it completing a puzzle, doodling, gardening, or taking part in interactive play (especially with your kids!)–be prepared to smash down any and all of the blocks that are impeding your ability to see fun as an integral part of your well-being.
Simon Says: Have Fun!
There is something so strange about the negative correlation between the process of adulting and the act of having fun. It’s as if the older we get, the less we’re expected to desire, need and enjoy fun. But we call BS on that (Belief System, we mean ;-)! In fact, it is our belief that silencing the guilt and tapping into a childlike curiosity will only spur you along on your quest to achieving happiness AND success. Make having fun a priority (just as a child does) and learn to enjoy yourself without guilt or fear. You will be so happy you did! 🙂
Reflection
- How does my body tell me that I’m overdue for some fun?
- What does fun look like to me? What does creativity look like to me?
- How can making room for my inner child heighten my experience of having fun?
- What will I say to silence my inner critic about pausing for fun?
- How do I feel after having made time for play?
Wishing you a lightness of heart and a freeness of mind as you give yourself permission to take a break from your scheduled work and be opened up to something truly beautiful.
For help with all this, book a free discovery call.
*20 Minute call with Dale
*20 minute with Trevor
~ Be well ~