There are a million reasons we play when we are little. It’s fun. It’s how we discover how things work, and it’s how we form bonds. Many of our early relationships - the ones we really remember and that shape our expectations of ourselves and others - are forged through play. Play is also how we discover ourselves, what we value, how to make choices, and how we intersect with the broader world.

But if you’re anything like me, at some point, you were also probably eager to grow up and to do those important, meaningful things adults can do. At a certain time in my growing-up journey, play was reassigned the role of “kid stuff” — activities and habits I wouldn’t be caught dead engaging in, for fear of looking less than serious. So play, like so many Pixar films remind us, was pushed to the wayside, to make room for my becoming a “serious” adult.

In a corporate context, work and play are often viewed as opposites, sometimes as conflicts with each other, as the goals and attitudes of each look so different in motion. But whether it was with a group of VCs, corporate bankers, entrepreneurs, nonprofit boards, or executives, I’ve rarely stepped into a boardroom where someone didn’t say to me, “We want to be more creative. It’s great you’re here.”

That’s why I believe if you’re not playing at work, you’re leaving the really good stuff on the table.

Still not convinced? Here are three reasons it’s time to bring play to work.

1. It makes working more fun.

When you are enjoying yourself, you’re present, less stressed, and more motivated. You show up differently, and that translates into how you approach your work. It also translates into how you interact with others, and how they interact with you. Have you witnessed a team that truly enjoys each other? Their energy is different, and you can sense it. Often that translates to a different sense of teamwork and collaboration. Every workplace could use a dose of play, and there are lots of ways every workplace can embrace it more.

Play is a terrific team-builder. Set aside a “moment of levity” or create a ritual around spaces and times to embrace play. This could be lunchtime, voting on who chose this week’s most hilarious cat video, a team-created daily haiku on the break room refrigerator, or a “where’s Waldo” to find whose cube the team’s stuffed animal mascot is visiting today. Host a hand jive showdown. Do something daily, weekly, or monthly. Just make sure it’s appropriate and inclusive. Or, if you work solo, consider the midday dance party for one, challenging yourself to some sticky-note origami (how many shapes or animals can you create?), or making a map that shows the locations of the best meals you’ve ever had.

2. It unlocks inspiration.

When you’re enjoying yourself, you get absorbed in the moment. Your mind moves past the typical challenges you are solving with your conscious brain. When you play, your left-brain rational side quiets down, and your right-brain creative side powers up. This is why, when you’re in a state of play, enjoyment, or distraction, you’re more likely to get a great idea, to see a new solution, or to spontaneously see a connection you didn’t before.

When you’re absorbed in play or diversion, your mind is free. You have space to explore and create, to solve. Ironically, there is a premium on imagination in the workplace. This is why there is such a big focus on innovation nowadays. We would probably be creating more innovation, except most of us don’t carve out a place for imagination as part of our daily work. Oh, except for big tech companies. They’ve stacked the deck in their favor, building out campuses with spaces for creative play…because they’ve figured it out.

3. It’s rewarding.

Teams that play together, achieve together. According to The Harvard Business Review, “culture is the operating system of an organization.” When play is embraced by all levels of an organization, managers lead and motivate differently. Creating a high-performing team this way looks and feels very different from one that checks play at the door. By baking creativity and play into performance expectations and metrics, your output naturally changes. Your work becomes more creative and innovative, and it’s much more likely to stand out and get noticed by higher management and other companies - or clients. Either way, which team would you want to be part of?

Why do I care so much about play?

Are there jobs where successful work requires entering a state of play — on purpose, on demand?

Having started my career as a professional musician, I can say yes.

Artists’ work is about serious, committed play. We are trained to enter a state of imagination, openness, possibility, and exploration instantly, and to bring others along with us.

When I entered the nonprofit sector more than 15 years ago, naturally, my imagination came with me. I applied it to the constant, shifting challenges there were always plenty to choose from, and all along the way, I learned from and worked with amazing people to solve them. Looking back, as a manager, strategic planner, and nonprofit executive, my solutions rarely looked like others’, but they achieved results.

Most of all, I’ve learned that creativity, combined with a powerful vision and guiding values, is what makes the most meaningful impact over time.

Lately, as a consultant, facilitator and entrepreneur, I hear firsthand from leaders and teams how important innovation is. They are hungry to increase their creativity, to expand their possibilities, and get into the mindset of innovation — but they just don’t know how to do it, let alone where to start.

Drawing from my artistic training and my work in the nonprofit and corporate contexts, I know just how to help.

That’s how my process of Practical Creativity came into being. It’s a guided process of imagination — play — on purpose, to improve your work and life.

It gets results, and it’s fun.

—> How do you play at work?
—> In what ways would incorporating more or regular play enhance your work?

Questions? Thoughts? Inquiries? It’s my passion to see how incorporating play into work can help you boost your results.

Please reach out anytime via email or to schedule a risk-free exploration call.