It’s a fact that children learn more effectively when they’re having fun.
Well, guess what, it’s the same for adults! I make it a priority to have fun in my workshops for 2 reasons:
- Having fun is more relaxing and removes a layer of stress!
- Research says that when we’re more relaxed, we assimilate information more easily.
Notoriously I don’t enjoy writing, so when I’m collaborating with my social media woman, Tee, writing newsletters or blogs, we purposefully create an atmosphere that’s playful, silly and irreverent. This immediately ramps up the enjoyment factor and we’re often amazed how things flow and what we produce as a result.
Side-note: At the time of writing this article, Tee’s in her home office on the west coast of France and I’m on the train heading to Zurich. I just turned on the Hotspot on my phone and opened the internet connection to get a signal, only to discover that someone on the train has named their wifi ‘I’m your boyfriend now!‘ Tee has just dared me to walk through the train, find the owner and get a date! Who knew writing a newsletter could potentially get me a date!
Drew Tarvin is a delightful human being and has also featured on my radio show Partner Up! with Amy Carroll. Drew is an advocate for puns! Head to his FaceBook page and he’ll have you smiling or laughing in no time. Here’s an example: I’ve decided to meditate only after eating, I call it mine full ness.
One of the things I use in my trainings are stories because stories help us to make connections and retain information. Adding humor and a playful style increases people’s desire to pay attention perhaps because they don’t want to miss a potential joke. What I find is that in the workplace, people still have a tendency to play it safe and be more formal or serious than needed. A consistent pattern I see is that people separate their professional persona from their personal persona. I believe this habit is a missed opportunity and a slow energy drain. If you’re someone who is naturally more playful and less serious in your personal life I encourage you to bring more of that style to your professional interactions and watch the results. If you’re reserved and serious in both areas of your life, consider challenging yourself to bring in more lightness and play.
Here are 3 examples of ways to weave some fun into your day:
- Share a scene from a funny movie, video, tiktok you recently enjoyed.
- Recount an amusing anecdote from your past.
- Read this article ROI for more ideas on developing your light, playful, humorous side.
