Joy in Work and Leisure—Seriously!
Today, I’ve intentionally designed my day for fun, joy, and meaning. For example:
I started the day indulging in thinking and working with a problem. That’s fun for me!
Now, as I write this newsletter, I’m wearing casual clothes and pink socks (dressing for joy as inspired by my latest podcast guest, Bree Groff, author of “Today was Fun—A Book About Work (Seriously)”). Listen to the episode here.
I even stopped myself to pause and make sure I’m having fun writing this newsletter (having just read a section of “Big Magic” by Elizabeth Gilbert reminding me that writing need not be painful—going to have to work on this one!).
Three themes have been present for me this month that have brought me to framing my day this way: 1) perspective, 2) getting serious about what’s important, and 3) allowing ourselves to experience joy.
I thought these were a perfect frame as we think about closing out the summer and heading back-to-work this Fall.
1. Perspective
A shift in perspective can change everything.
Inspired by the concept of complementarity (commonly explained through the example that light is both a particle and a wave; you see one vs. the other dependent on how you’re observing it) from reading the book, “Notes on Complexity” by Neil Theise—what if another view of our reality is available to us, but our current mindset is blocking it? If we shift our lens, can we shift our experience?
This was the invitation from Bree Groff. Can we shift the experience of our work by changing our mindset?
As Bree said, “If we walk into work expecting it to be dreadful, we self‑manifest that experience.”
We can think: “Work won’t love us back!” Or on the flip side, have high expectations: “Work must be my passion and legacy!”
Or we can simply choose to make work fun, most of the time. Because work does matter in our lives. It is important (seriously!).
Our mindset around our work matters, and we can choose an empowering perspective.
2. Getting serious, seriously.
Bree first planted the seed of “serious” with the title of her book, but then in recent weeks it started to show up again and again.
With her book, seriously means it’s truly possible—with intention and attention, work truly can be fun.
And seriously also means that certain aspects of our lives are worthy of our attention and intention.
This idea of getting serious reminded me of a quote I came across visiting the Eames Institute late last year. Charles Eames said about work, “Take your pleasure seriously.”
In an article published by the Eames Office, the quote is explained further:
“It means choosing work that you enjoy. It means doing a deep dive—taking the time to delve into your pursuits and explore them fully. It’s an encouragement to analyze objects, ideas, problems, and subjects from every angle with a playful, exploratory openness that allows you to reap the joys of the process.”
This is aligned with Bree’s philosophy.
And then this idea of seriousness came up in a webinar with happiness guru, author, and Harvard professor Arthur Brooks where he said, “Leisure is serious business.” (More on that below.)
So, the right perspective brought to our work and leisure is worthy of our attention and intention.
As Bree also said: “Work can be a source of joy—one of many in our lives—but it doesn’t have to be our whole life.”
Yes, take our work seriously, but take our leisure seriously, too.
3. Allowing Joy
The above quote from Eames is an invitation to allow joy to be present in our work. As Bree said, ****“You have more agency to bring joy into your day than you realize.”
This is something I write about in “Sustainable Ambition,” as well—allowing more joy in our life and work. It’s also a topic I explore in an article I just wrote in partnership with Productive Flourishing: “Rethinking ‘Busy’: Allowing ourselves to lead full, sustainable lives.”
Last weekend I spoke with a friend about this very point—allowing an activity and the experience of it to be purely for joy—not for accomplishment, not for recognition, not for anything other than pure enjoyment in the process.
This type of enjoyment was expressed in the book I feature below, “Raising Hare” by Chloe Dalton. I indulged in the joy of reading about her own with the experience of communing with nature, a hare.
The question becomes—can we give ourselves the permission to allow joy in? Can we cultivate it?
Now to you
As you close out the summer and look toward the end of year, how might these concepts shift how you operate in the months ahead?
Perspective: What might you see and allow with a powerful shift in perspective?
Seriously: How can you get serious about fun and leisure? This doesn’t have to mean difficult and effortful. Pulling from a few of Bree’s tips in her book: Try paying attention to small, joyful moments (what Bree calls “thin slicing your joy”), amusing yourself in your work, or dressing for joy.
Allowing joy: What would it look like to cultivate joy this month and in the ones ahead?
Here’s to finding and allowing fun and joy this season!
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Sustainable Ambition offers a strategic approach for pursuing our professional and personal goals in a way that is motivating, meaningful, and manageable from stage to stage, rather than be all consuming in a way that compromises other important aspects of our lives or sacrifices our well-being.