Leo Babauta, the author of the book “The Power of Less” and the guy behind the popular blog Zen Habits, recently published a post about how to be happy anytime.
I’m always happy with what I’m doing, because I don’t compare it to anything else, and instead pay close attention to the activity itself. I’m always happy with whoever I’m with, because I learn to see the perfection in every person. I’m always happy with where I am, because there’s no place on Earth that’s not a miracle.
Playing like a kid fills me with joy and happiness. So I find it strange that adults seem to have forgotten how to play. Now, I’m not blowing my own horn, but I’m totally into playing. I’ll play in business meetings. I’ll play whilst running or in cafes. I’ll play and pull funny faces until the cows come home. I find that people often comment about my playful nature, noticing how it brings joy to others, how it brings people together and/or how it creates reasons for laughter. People have even thanked me for reminding them of how to play. Some even ask how I “do it”. That got me thinking, “How do I do it and why is it so easy for me to play and where did my playful nature come from?”
Well, I look at my grandmother who, in her late eighties (I nearly wrote her age… LOL… she’d not be grateful for that one), still goofs off and has a laugh with my granddad. Last time I visited her she cracked a funny then said, “Do you think I’ll ever grow up?” I was like, “I hope not!” Then I look at my dad who I can have a conversation on the phone that goes like this:
So my family is pretty playful, it would seem, so I guess that’s why I find it easy to play. That’s doesn’t answer HOW I do it though, right? So how DO I play? The first thing that comes to mind is I allow myself to. Plain and simple. I allow myself to play like a kid. I allow myself to goof off. I allow myself to be seen to be playful. I allow myself to recognize that in playing I’m not only getting a huge personal kick of happiness, but I’m causing happiness for others. I also allow myself to not always “get it right”. Not everyone appreciates my playful nature and that’s ok. Now, I know there’s more to it that just allowing, but for the most part that’s it. I allow myself to play.
So, for the “unplayfuls” out there and the folks that have forgotten how to play, I challenge you to ALLOW yourself to play for a week. See how it feels and see how many smiles you can cause in the process. Go play and be happy.
