“Show me how to play. Show me how to become the kind of person of whom my kids would one day be able to say, “He was playful. He was so fun to be with.”
- Morgan Snyder
We were sitting around tables of leaders this week. We were talking about what we deeply valued in each of the other people around the table. Having a dozen people tell you what they value about you and how you affect their life will keep your tank filled for a pretty good length of time.
We were talking about one leader who is a very good friend and a partner in many of our endeavors as a coaching team. He has the kind of strategic brilliance that would have him standing out in any gathering around the globe. He traveled the world solving complex problems before settling down to run a small business.
Ironically, the intellect he holds and the lifelong learning that continues to broaden that beautiful mind was not what most people focused on. Much of the feedback was around the childlike wonder he has. Not childish, but childlike. Because even though he could deconstruct, rethink, and redesign almost any idea and anything, his childlike wonder is what stands out the most.
What you experience is joy. He looks for the good in things, celebrates others easily, and is growing in that capacity. He bucks the conventional wisdom that would say a deep journey into faith requires stepping away from intellect or wisdom. We all spend way too much time in our heads. The more he understands, the deeper his faith grows, and the more joy he finds.
And he works really hard at continuing on this path. He takes every Friday off to hike and annually takes in a few exotic places to increase his awe of creation. On a recent daylong hike, he felt like God gave him a clear message.
“You need more Play-doh and less Plato.”
His humility would tell me that he might have received that as an indictment or challenge to the way he thinks. But I know this man and I know his God. This message rang through to me, loud and clear.
“Keep going, buddy. You are on the right track. Your childlike wonder is changing the lives and perspectives of everyone you meet.”
Having some grandkids is a great reminder of the importance of childlike wonder. Getting out “there” to experience the work of the Creator in the creation is a good way to remember it as well.
““Everybody needs beauty as well as bread, places to play in and pray in, where nature may heal and give strength to body and soul.” ”
Playing (with Play-doh or otherwise) is increasingly important in a world that continues to take itself far too seriously. It is the path to a more joyful, thoughtful, and balanced life. And if that is not incentive enough, play and getting appropriate time away from our work is actually the necessary ingredient for elevated solutions and greater productivity.
Consider
When you hear the word “play”, what comes to mind?
Is it a current reality, an infrequent friend, or a distant memory?
When is the last time you played?