I take it that a few people thought the point of my last post was to suggest that people should quit their jobs. Perhaps it’s the point in which I come out and recommend that everyone who doesn’t work for themselves is living a low quality life. Because that’s exactly the type of thing that I would say.
As a case in point, I’ll share a comment I got on that post from lavendula13 at Reddit:
Stupid, self-serving, egocentric cock rot. Most of us don’t have a choice, asshat.
I love this comment for several reasons. One, I absolutely love the term “asshat.” Two, I love the self-assuredness of his lack of a choice in the matter. Third, I love that he took the time to see how this train of thought would play out. This is an absolutely wonderful comment that’s a testament to the quality of commenters on the Internet.
Sure, there are some elements to the questions that may make you question the suitability of your current job. If it helps you get out of a bad situation, great. But I have a larger goal: I want to change the way you think about your work and your play. I want to give you a new paradigm that I hope will clear some things up and empower you to do more of those awesome things that you do.
Work, Play, and That’s It
From an early age, we’ve associated “work” with something we don’t want to do and “play” with things we want to do. Our lives are structured around “work” days, “vacation” and “leave” days, and “rest” days. The end result is that we create conceptual dichotomies along the following axes: job/fun, work/play, and leisure/productivity.
But what happens when our work becomes play? Or when our play becomes work? That is, what happens when we find ourselves in the position such that the things we want to do are the same things that put food on the table?
What happens is that most people are still stuck with the work/play paradigm that the rest of us are in. On one level, they know that they love what they do, yet at the same time they have to untangle their emotional associations when they talk and think about what they do.
So pernicious is our cultural socialization that it’s hard for us to really come to grips with the fact that it’s possible to have fun doing the work that you do and there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that. In fact, that’s the ideal situation.
Introducing Productive Play
Stop living in the work/play dichotomy. As with most things in the life, there’s a third category: productive play.
Productive play is what creatives do when they’re reaching down to their core and creating that new thing. Hours lost while writing, making music, painting, coding, designing, problem-solving, and such do not feel like work – they feel like play are done for the process, not the product.
Think about how children play for a second. Sure, there’s a point to the games that they play, but usually adults are the ones who have structured play to have a specific outcome. Children enjoy playing not because they’ll reach an outcome, but because the process of playing is fun.
That we learn to structure play into outcomes is part of the problem. The closer we tie play to a specific outcome, the less fun it generally is. And, of course, work is tied to a specific outcome – is it any wonder that we don’t find it fun?
But unlike pure play, in which no specific outcomes are desired, productive play happens to have the side benefit of advancing one’s goals and projects. At the end of a day of productive play, a good creative recognizes that something came from that day spent at play. It may be a great creation, an advance in their creative skill, or the building of a great relationship.
Before I make the jump to the next section, please remember that by “productive,” I don’t mean the mere business metrics that we mostly associate with productivity. Spending time with friends, family, and loved ones is productive – perhaps much more that putting food on the table. Spending time brainstorming and dreaming can be productive. Exercising is productive because it both makes you healthy and helps your energy levels during other sessions of productive play. If it fits in with your goals, makes you a more full person, and you enjoy it, it’s productive play.
Productive Play Is Not The End of the Story
It’s truly awesome when work becomes productive play. The goal is to get as much of the “work” one has to do to become productive play, for productive play is something that you want to do rather than have to do. That makes all the difference in the world.
One of the things that makes productive play so powerful and motivating is that the energy comes from an internal source – without sounding overly spiritual, productive play is a manifestation of your ideas, skills, and energy in the world. The problem, though, is that many of us are using the best parts of ourselves on projects that aren’t really our own. It’s draining when that piece of the world that’s uniquely ours is taken by someone else and they profit from it, compromise on its excellence, or kill it because it doesn’t match their plans.
This, I suspect, is the tension that Ali and Mike feel in what they’re doing (responding to their comments from the last posts). They both love what they do, but they don’t love who they’re doing it for. It’s the tension that almost every freelancer I know feels. At a certain point, loving what you do is not enough – we want that piece of us to be our piece to share with the world, not someone else’s.
I’m leaving it here for today with a call to action. See what parts of your “work” are productive play and which aren’t. Try to find ways to spend more time in productive play, pulling from both “work” and “play” to make it happen. And, perhaps most importantly, see what you can do to spend your time in productive play to advance your own projects and goals.
Returning to the awesome comment that lead into this post, moving more of your work to productive play and moving more of your productive play to your own stuff is possible. I’m doing it, and I’m currently a full-time University employee, completing my dissertation, an officer in the Guard, and running an internet business. I’m not saying this to brag, but rather to express that I understand what it’s like to have a lot going on – but I also know that moving towards a more healthy and happy tomorrow starts with a choice and action today. Take the long view when you dream, but act on the short view today.
You had me at “cock rot”. It’s not often one gets to see that phrase in print!
John, AceOnlineSchoolss last blog post..35 Thought Provoking Education Quotes
I’m not super into my work, but it’s a regular paycheck, I get the opportunity to write while working, and nobody’s busting down my door to sell my books … yet.
I like to think I have a good attitude about the work-issue, tho. And will gladly leave it some day for the thousands of hobbies I know I’ll have (and the odd jobs I’ll get when I get fed up being self-employed).
Matthews last blog post..Podcast Demo "Houses"
Great post, Charlie. Not only did you write about an important subject in the art of self-actualization, but you also used the angry comment in the service of productive play. Nicely done. 🙂
Duffs last blog post..Deconstructing Personal Development, Part 2: Development is Non-Linear
Again, you’re right on target with the idea of productive play.
Another idea that it’s taken me years to grasp is that people in institutions can accomplish a lot of good. Institutions can provide the structure that allows a whole lot of interesting process to take place, like a well-dug perennial bed. What would higher education look like if it were done by a bunch of freelancers? People on soapboxes attracting followers?
What about separating your productive play with personal relationship building. I feel that when my passion for my work comes out in my conversations with girls, that they lose interest, or they become intimidated. I’m slowly finding more people in line with my kind of energy, but I’m in a doctorate program and now the people I am with have the energy, but their thinking is too much inside the box!
Alexs last blog post..Why Only You are Responsible for Your Health
I like how you define productive play. It is true that once we attach an outcome to the process, we take the fun out from it.
Evelyn Lims last blog post..Can You Read My Mind?
Playing keeps you open to possibilities and lets you see things that you wouldn’t if you weren’t tuned it. And, ultimately, playing is enjoyable and therefore sustainable for long periods of time 🙂
Amanda Linehans last blog post..Lost? Find Yourself Again.
I think a lot of people can only live with themselves if they convince themselves that they have no choices. They do it about work, about kids, about relationships, about whether their kids go to school. Everything. And they react the way your commentor reacted because we say things that make them realize that maybe they do have choices and they aren’t taking responsibility for their own lives. They lash out instead. I get a bit pissed off about that, actually. I don’t really care what choices people make but I would like them to take responsibility for their choices and accept that I have made different ones.
The idea of productive play is really interesting.
JoVEs last blog post..Play, concentration & school performance
Ha! I love that you highlighted that comment. 🙂 That’s one of the big rewards of working with kids: on occasion, you’re actually forced to play. It’s a great reminder that it’s okay to have fun. And yeah, sometimes it’s even—gasp!–productive.
Sara at On Simplicitys last blog post..Six Months of Simplicity!
Hee-Hee!
Haven’t seen “asshat” since the last time I was on Craigslist Rant-n-Raves!
I think if you’re doing what you love to do then the fun is ingrained. If you hate what you do then this may be a monumental take which begs the question:
Why the heck are you still at the job?
Cheers!
George
Tumblemooses last blog post..I think the Editor was asleep
I love that you are elaborating on this topic and the comment that you included. I think most people see the world as a hardcoded thing that cannot be changed, with rules that cannot be bent or broken. Writing like this is what’s going to make all the difference! Keep it up. 🙂
Nathalie Lussier from Billionaire Womans last blog post..Travel: A Journey to Expanding Horizons
The idea of productive play is such a gray line. Like you suggested it’s hard to find a place where what you love doesn’t get labeled and treated like work. I find in my dance career that when I want it to be profitable is when I forget to enjoy myself. I forget why I love what I do when it’s all of a sudden labeled and treated like a crappy job. The minute I actually started enjoying, expressing and creating without the label was the moment I got more opportunity.
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“I’m not super into my work, but it’s a regular paycheck, I get the opportunity to write while working,…” -Matthew #2
The quote above from comment #2 sums it up for me. It also helps for to me thankful for what is RIGHT with my job and not focus on the negative too much. I’m working of weaning myself from having a typical day-job, but it helps to focus on what’s right for the time being.
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@John: I’d never actually seen or heard the word before. I still like asshat better, though.
@Matt: I like the pensive yet optimistic “yet.” Keep at it, day by day, and “yet” will become today.
@Duff: That’s why hackers and writers are always such a tough crowd to mess with. Sure, you may get the first word, but it’s the last, enduring word that counts. And plus, I thought I should share the humor!
@Alex: I know exactly how you feel. Really. I found out the hard way that my approach to philosophy is not quite in line with the direction of my department. So I do the best I can to find areas of convergence and let the rest go. Otherwise, you end up wasting a lot of energy. Your mileage may vary.
@Evelyn: I wonder about the outcome. Specific outcomes are bothersome. But a general one may help constrain the play to make it productive. There’s a fine balance here.
@Amanda: It’s that sustainability piece that I find so empowering. You don’t need breaks from productive play – so ideas like vacations seem a bit weird. Vacations become a change in scenary, not something needed to keep you working. It’s a critical difference.
@JoVe: It’s so much easier to either blame somebody else or become a martyr. Everyone appreciates when people make sacrifices so we’ve learned to reach first for that – it’s understandable and comforting. Admitting that the time we waste each day can build a better tomorrow, and it’s almost all about choices – that’s hard. The cognitive dissonance between the reasons we give ourselves and others and the realization of the reality is discomforting.
@Sara: Gasp!, indeed. How dare we have fun while being the type of people we want to be?
@George: Because we have to. I think there are good reasons to keep a job while building your way out of it. The important point is to start moving in a direction that’s toward your optimal self-actualization.
@Nathalie: Thanks for the encouragement! I find it ironic that we all know that social rules are malleable, yet we make them out like they’re not. There’s no set script in front of us – we just need actors willing to improv!
@Amber: Beautiful insight. Since most creative work is expressive, we cannot but help for our negativity to collude with what we are trying to express. Pure joy and beauty, though, is contagious. People want a taste of it, and are willing to provide opportunities for us to show it.
@Carla: Excellent point! Our days are much better when we realize and focus on the good parts, while admitting that there are some bad. The good parts give us momentum and energy, whereas the bad drain us.
An excellent point — the ideal job is the one you’d do even if you weren’t paid to do so, because it’s so FUN!
I count my blessings for having realized this myself. I love making music and I love blogging. So I have a business plan to combine the two into a profitable enterprise.
Do you know of Tom Volkar? He’s a great business coach (sorry if this is a conflict of interest with your service, but I think you and Tom are compatible, not competitive). I recently took his business discovery course, which is designed to help people discover their ideal self-employment/business. It’s here:
http://www.delightfulwork.com/business-discovery-group/
ari
Ari Koinumas last blog post..What I Force My Children to Learn, or Not (Digest)
I think you’ve hit the nail on the head for me, Charlie; I do love what I do, but I want more of it to be for me rather than for clients.
I’ve actually made the decision recently to focus more on the “play” elements of what I do (creative writing in particular), and I’ve also found myself injecting more “fun” into the work that I’m doing on my paid blogging, by trying to make posts a little more creative and unusual. The writing process is easier, because it’s enjoyable, and it’s going down brilliantly with readers too!
Ali Hale (from Alpha Student)s last blog post..Stay in touch with friends back home
@Ari: I wish you all the luck. Have fun, provide value, and the rest comes to you. And I do know of Tom – I like his work. We each have voices to be heard, and we each respond to people differently, so there’s no conflict of interest. Thanks for sharing!
@Ali: We can sense when someone enjoys what they’re doing, even if we can’t see them. Our art carries that emotion, and others want to share in it. So it doesn’t surprise me that you and your readers are sharing in the fun. I’m so happy you’re able to actualize your talents into fun – it’s a joy to watch.
It’s funny how when you take the risk of giving yourself permission to “play,” amazing things happen.
Learning to play “during regular business hours” is a practice for me after 20 years of corporate service.
This summer I practiced “playing” at lunch time. I took 2-3 hour lunch breaks to drive to friend’s house, have lunch, float in the pool, take in the sun and relax and appreciate my life (like wow, I’m floating in a pool at lunch time!)
When I got back to my office, I would always be surprised at what was in my inbox for instance. Each time I gave myself permission to play – fear would say, “Are you crazy? You need to be working… working hard!”
I took the risk to take a swim and surprise! I’d come home to a new business invitation, a client prospect… something good, really good.. and productive, for myself and my business.
Thank you for the really great post and reminder to choose fun & play.
There is an Excellent Video lecture on Playful Development:
http://tv.adobe.com/watch/max-2008-develop/playful-development-by-gever-tulley-and-joel-brandt/