Fun. Relearn It.

Our childhoods were built around fun. Remember? 

Games, sports, friends, weekends, etc. It was awesome.

We scraped our knees, stayed up late, made lifelong friends, smiled a lot and ate a ton of Laffy Taffy (maybe that last one was just me).

Then we became adults. Got jobs. Filled our lives with responsibilities, bills, stress and constant distractions.

When did it happen? Why did it happen? Reasons may differ but it happens, nonetheless.

Fun got replaced. Now the times it resurfaces are few and far between.

It’s time to categorically reject that. 

Fun isn’t just a reprieve or break from 'life' – it should be part of it. Fun should be in the stressful jobs, during the meetings and wrapped up in our days even when it’s unexpected because that’s usually when we need it the most.

Crack jokes. Poke fun. Don’t put up fake walls between friends and colleagues – they can be both. Smile more. Be silly. Make fun of yourself and embrace your inner Peter Pan, who never really grew up.

If we can relearn fun, we’ll work harder. Stress less. Gain perspective. Be candid. Take risks. Step up. Most importantly, we won’t take ourselves so damn seriously. That’s a condition that seems to be chronic among adults and I promise you our younger selves would very likely make fun of us today for being such “dorks.”  

Fun shouldn’t be some outside thing we turn to when we’re about to crack. It should be ever-present and something on our to-do list every single day. 

Sound like a childish thought? That’s the whole point.