Playfulness shapes our lives by challenging the notion that growing up means leaving behind the joy and creativity of play. This transition often comes with a message: to put aside play, embrace responsibility, and focus on being a provider and worker. Yet, this perspective overlooks the profound impact playfulness has on our wellbeing.
Playfulness moves beyond games, embodying a state of mind vital for imagination, creativity, experimentation, connection. It roots in young mammals’ behaviors, proving essential for learning.
As children become adolescents, play‘s form changes and becomes more conditioned. Sports and social activities offer lessons in winning and losing, strategy, and what society values.
But unstructured, pure play, fueled by curiosity, is a crucial building block to strong relationships and emotional intelligence.
Lacking play isn’t just missing fun; it’s skipping opportunities for a healthy, adaptable life. Research across species shows play’s necessity for wellbeing. Without it, we stay conditioned in following the path of expectations.
Seeing play only as child’s play misses its deep impact. It’s about joy, learning, and experimenting. Playfulness gives us the freedom to adapt, connect, and creatively show up in the world. Play, in essence, is our sail through life’s vast, unpredictable seas.
“It’s the things we play with and the people who help us play that make a great difference in our lives.”—Fred Rogers
Playfulness is not a resource that depletes with time; it’s a mindset that we to play with.