Fun is more than simply fun, it is a must for a well-lived and joy-filled existence. When we do fun things, they restore us and we carry the feelings into our futures. We revive our spirits. Having fun helps us develop the resilience necessary to handle life’s ever-evolving challenges.

One of my favourite Podcasts is called the Happiness Lab. A recent episode got me thinking about how to add more authentic fun in my own life. In a resent episode, Fun researcher Catherine Price shared the 3 things we need to truly have fun. They are playfulness, connection, and flow.

Playfulness is lightheartedness.

It lets us find joy in our everyday activities. By embracing our playfulness, we can manage life stress better. We can also find joy in simple things.

Connection is the feeling of having a special, shared experience with another person. When we develop stronger social ties, we become more resilient during trying times by nurturing our relationships. By creating chances to connect we can improve our well-being.

Flow is a state of complete engagement and focus, where we lose track of time. Flow is active. It’s different from the mindless absorption of binge-watching Netflix. Doing flow-inducing activities can greatly improve our well-being. They give us a sense of purpose.

When we experience playfulness, connection, and flow simultaneously, the effects are almost magical. We feel focused, present, and free from anxiety and self-criticism. We laugh, feel connected to others and our authentic selves, and enjoy the process of life.

It’s my go-to advice for any relationship hurdle. It applies to anyone and anything. Have fun on purpose. Have fun as a priority. I feel that we cannot resolve anything until we remember that we can have fun. Its a beautiful thing that we humans are are gifted the ability to find delight almost anywhere.

We can actively incorporate more fun into our lives.

First, we need to cut down on “fake” fun. This includes activities that don’t inspire playfulness, connection, or flow. Sometimes we do things because we think something should be fun. I know I have done things many times that drain me instead of fill me up in the name of fun. (Monopoly, anyone??)

Next, we find our “fun magnets.” We this by recalling times where we had true fun. Memories. These can be moments like playing with your dog, or splashing about in the ocean or karaoke (ect). As long as you can remember having a blast, it counts. Knowing what brings joy allows us to make wiser decisions about how to spend our time.

Once we have found our fun magnets, we then prioritize them. We do this by putting them on our calendars. If the theme of art or nature or friend (or anything you identify) comes up alot, make time to do something that incorporates that element. Try new things. Look up workshops. make plans with a friend. Get it on the calendar. While we can’t force fun, we can create an environment that makes it more likely to occur. We can enhance our chances of true fun by making time for fun activities. Or, by socializing with people who bring us fun.

I the everyday we can find ways to “microdose” on fun and look for opportunities for connection, playfulness, and flow. It’s sharing a smile with a stranger. Or doing something nice for a friend. These small bits of fun can impact us in big ways.

There are opportunities for fun all around us.

In the small moments and the large. Planned and unplanned. We need to remind ourselves to reach out and grab them. I can find fun on a park bench and watching the squirrels. I just have to remember to be present, that means not scrolling my phone and slowing down for a while. Connecting with my here and now. There is fun to be found if we look for it.

I have been creating a fun “map” for myself. A kind of ven diagram so that I can streamline fun for myself. It includes a lot of trying new things, mindfulness and gratitude. I journal it out so that I have a record of research. The results have actually been life-changing. I like life more now then before I started. I have more healthy habits and I feel more sure of myself.

When I try new things, I add them to my research. I disect the activities. perhaps I liked some elements but not others. Writing this down is really assisting me in finding my style of fun. I’m getting better at spotting fake fun.

Music is on my fun map. I used to think I really liked going to concerts. I have since discovered with my fun map, that I do not. I do not like loud noises. I do not like being too close to strangers and im not a fan of drunks. However, I like live music, I like the outdoors and relaxing – Festivals, festivals are for me. No more sensory disrupting Music halls. My ven diagram is getting easier to read.

I recently signed up for Sonic floats. I go on Fridays. It is singing bowls and a woman with the voice of an angel sings while you float around in a pool. I love it. Chosen because it matched my fun map. 🙂 Water – check. Live music – check. Relaxing- Check. Spiritual self care- Check. Meeting like-minded people – Check. Only takes up 2 hours of my life from leaving the house to returning – check. for me this has all – playfulness, connection and flow.

One of the finding fun exercises from Catherine Price ia a daily ritual of lifting your pointer finger into the air 3 times a day and declare delight. You can declare delight over big or small moments, but you must find new delights every day. It can be a cool-looking cloud – DELIGHTFUL. The first sip of a hot drink- DELIGHTFUL. Anything at all. What I have gotten out of this practice is that I am inundated with things to delight in. It was harder for the first month, to remember to raise my finger or to find a delights, but one day a funny thing happened. It was impossible not to be delighted constantly. It actually led me to Photography. I was delighted so often, I want to start capturing it all through a lens.

As Catherine Price writes in The Power of Fun:

“… the more attention you pay to the delights in your life, the more delights will reveal themselves to you. It’s almost like tuning in to a frequency on a radio dial. And the better attuned you become to everyday delights, and the more actively you seek them out, the more likely it will be for one of your delights to cross the line into fun. (And even when this does not happen, you’ll still be delighted, which is a lovely state in which to spend your time.)

Focusing on delight will also help you cultivate a Fun Mindset by rekindling your inner playful spirit, the part of you that knew how to have fun when you were a child, and coaxing it a little bit further out of its grown-up shell. Not only will you attract more delight to yourself, but you yourself will become more delightful — which in turn will transform you into an even more magnetic force, both to other people, and to fun itself.”

So let’s prioritize fun and enjoy the process of life.

Be kind out there, Go have fun.

Best,

Fran.