Paul Rand once suggested, “If there were no Play, there wouldn’t have been a Picasso.” Can you only imagine!?!

So, Play… you did… and, just think what if— just what if you could take that very same play into every project, every creation, every condition, every aspect of your life? What if when you go out to the grocery store to shop you could take that same presence of mind, i.e., playing as you buy your bread and bologna? What if you took Play into all other environments and attitudes of life— what if you just took that frame of mind along all the time — Play!?!.

Have you every noticed how, as adults, we tend to get stuck on the outside of the playground fence? Perhaps if you could invent play into your work and your errands—and even your relationships with people, the very ideal of Play could reaffirm the values? The messages you might create as a result could touch humanity… the expressive language of Play helps you to realize the improbable.

And, then there are so many good reasons why we should realize the priority of play in our adult lives:

Play inspires us to think differently.

It can break the rules- crashes the status quo… just look at Disney or Apple, two great examples.

Play brings us joy and reduces our stress.

We crave play.

It is instinctive and fundamental to our existence. It hones our problem-solving abilities that help us handle our complex world.

Play gives us more energy and longer lives. It makes our hearts healthier.

Play reduces conflict and acts as an antidote to violence.

Play stimulates the imagination, curiosity, and creativity.

And play reinforces a positive outlook and makes us feel like winners.

Play is important to our professional lives as well as to our general well-being. Tom Peters says, “The difference between great and average and lousy in any job is, mostly, having the imagination and zeal to recreate yourself daily.”

Here you are—last week—reinventing yourselves. Playing.

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