Lighten Up!

For many of us, December is the most stressful month of the year. The weather is cold, the roads and stores are crowded and you have a lot to do.

Each day you face serious burdens. Maybe you don't make enough money. Perhaps your love life is non-existent. Your work might be unbearable.

Perhaps you dislike where you live. Your coworkers are unfriendly. You do things you regret.

If you finally decide to do something about it, what do you do?

Move to a new town? Leave your spouse? Look for a new job?

Maybe you just watch more television or drink a little more wine.

But the drudgeries or burdens always return. Life seems pretty serious.

Fortunately, you can do something right now that will change everything.

"When a man loses his Spirit of Play, he's dead." "... a guy will tell you, 'Well, I had some illusions when I was a kid, but I've lost all those. I'm practical now. We've got to face this thing practically, and what we are doing here is very serious.'"

"You want to know what seriousness is? Seriousness is solidity. You ever hear of a 'solid citizen?'

"There's nothing that succeeds like insouciance*. Plain flippancy** will actually get more done in less time than anything else you can name."

"And the more seriously you take the game, the less chance there is of winning."-- L. Ron Hubbard (*Insouciance: Lack of concern, carefree.) (**Flippancy: casualness, disrespectful joy.)
Benefits

When you take things less seriously and fire up your Spirit of Play, you enjoy several benefits.

● You get more done with less effort.

● You think of new solutions that are simple and effective.

● People enjoy being around you.

● You feel healthier and more alive.

● You get more cooperation and support from others

● You have more fun.

So how do you take the game of life less seriously? How can you get more insouciant or flippant?
Recommendations

If you are in good mental shape, simply reminding yourself to lighten up can switch you from a serious mood to a light and carefree mood.

For example, you are stuck in a long traffic line waiting to get into a parking lot. You get into the parking lot and can't find a place to park. Instead of driving around giving people dirty looks, you decide to lighten up. "Why am I getting so serious about a parking space! I'll park down the street and get in some exercise."

As another example, your car breaks down. You get mad at yourself for not taking better care of it. You then criticize yourself for not making enough money. You feel like smashing your car with a hammer. Instead you say, "I'm getting too serious here! When I'm rich and successful, this will be really funny." You laugh and get your car fixed.

Another example: You and your spouse are not talking. You disagreed about something, had an argument and got very serious. You decide, "We need to lighten up!" So you act silly or tell jokes until you and your spouse laugh.

Your Spirit of Play can make or break your business or career. If you get serious, you not only feel lousy, you make others lose the joy of work. Your days drag by and you look for ways to quit. You lose more often than you win.

If you stop taking your job so seriously, you and those around you make better decisions. Your days fly by as you get more done. You win the game.