The world can be a really sad, depressing place sometimes. When you turn on the news, it’s either bad news or worse news – the good, sweet stuff rarely makes headlines, and if it does, it’s on Good Morning America instead of the primetime slot. There’s a heated, controversial election, there are terrorist groups, there are cheats, liars, and evildoers. And at the end of the day, it can be hard to hit the pillow feeling all good and cheery if you’re actually aware of all of the nonsense and sadness and hardships that plague the globe today.
Then there’s your own life. I know so many of you suffer from Type A-itis…#BeenThereDoneThat. We’re perfectionists. We’re workaholics. We’re so serious about making it happen, sometimes at the expense of our own happiness. We have anxiety, we have fears and dreams, we have real life struggles, and sometimes it’s hard to hit Monday with a stride other than ugh.
So today’s mantra is easy. It’s lighthearted. It’s intentional, important, and FUN.
“Have some fun today.”
We talked last time about how the world needs a major kick o’ kindness. It still does. It always will. But we as overambitious, overachieving individuals also need some FUN. For the longest time, my biggest problem wasn’t that I wasn’t hustling hard enough. I can always hustle hard enough.
My problem was an inability to let go and have fun without feeling guilty about it afterwards.
Have you felt the same? When you’re at this stage of hustle and bustle, ambition and achieving, you sometimes don’t know how to stop. When you’re constantly go-go-go, you don’t know how to brake. It’s all or nothing. You’re either full steam ahead, neck deep in productivity and to-do lists, or you’re lying on the couch for six hours with Netflix and pizza. There is no in between. There is no balance. It’s not good, it is hard, and it needs works. But it’s important. Hustle hard and then have some fun today – because you deserve it.
We get super anal about our work.
We get really tied into the grind.
We forget to stop and think or eat and breathe sometimes, let alone have fun. Heck, if I had an additional cuppa coffee for every one I’ve forgotten cold in the microwave, I’d never need Starbucks again.
But that’s not healthy, good, or fun. And what’s a world without any fun?
c/o (*Code Cominguproses for 15% off) // Camo leggings (, ) // (also)
As perfectionists, we sometimes make the mistake of trying to define what is and is not deemed acceptable fun. The longloved ideas of spontaneity and adventure that we long for and dream of in high school and college…they become replaced. They’re replaced with a longing for accomplishment, advancement, and achievement, and we don’t necessarily feel that fun and career-furthering go hand in hand. There’s not necessarily a place in our heads that fits both, comfortably, side by side, where we can reach important milestones in our lives while also having fun.
It’s like society tells us to choose.
No, you can’t be a boss and also have fun.
No, you can’t have fun and also be a boss.
Fun and work cannot coexist. They come at the expense of the other.
You must choose.
I call BS. Have some fun today. Push the societal limits. You don’t have to be a workaholic to do great things in work. And you don’t need to spend an entire day or night on leisure just to have a good time. You can actually have a bit of both, believe it or not. I swear to you, it’s possible. It takes work and isn’t *always* fun, but it is 100% possible to do something kickass today and have some fun today, too. You can do both. You might not be able to do both at the exact same time, and some days the balance might feel off, but it’s important to never forget to have some fun today whether you’re off saving the world, writing a novel, earning a Nobel’s Peace Prize, hustling through a busy day as a mama, working hard on your thesis, studying for midterms, or analyzing whether or not your crush likes you back.
c/o (*Code Cominguproses for 15% off) // Camo leggings (, ) // (also)
Important: There is no set metric for “fun.” You define your own fun, and no one can tell you otherwise! As long as it makes you happy and smile and satisfies your heart and soul, it fits the bill. (And if it’s legal + safe, that’s also a double plus always 😉 ). Don’t judge your idea of fun, and don’t compare it to others. Fun can be ziplining upside down over the jungle (#BeenThereDoneThat), or finally finishing a TV series that you’ve watched eight Friday nights straight (#BeenThereDoneThatToo). Whether your “fun” is active, chill, with the squad or flyin’ solo, it’s yours and yours alone so embrace it and make it count.
Also Important: You don’t need a set amount of time for fun. Sure, a whole afternoon to kill sounds amazing (and sure as heck sounds fun). But for those who are trying to balance bossness + fun (ie. all of us amiright???), ain’t nobody got time for a whole day of break. If you only have a few minutes to steal between everything you’re juggling, that’s fine! Just make ’em count. Savor them. Do something that you really really really REALLY want to do, just fo’ you, just fo’ fun. Don’t compare the amount of time you have to others – it’s not about that. It’s never about that. It’s about you and your own ability and willingness to have actual, real fun today.
AND LASTLY, the best way to live life: learn how to make the mundane fun. If you commute, take it as an opportunity to have fun via new podcasts, books on tape, new music, etc., and *only* let yourself have fun with those things on your commute to really give yourself something to happily anticipate every weekday (+ here’s 26 ways to make your commute awesome!). Add little things to your workspace for a fun moment when you need a breather, like a candle or candle warmer, photos of fun memories, fun + inspiring quotes, etc. Have an inbox solely reserved for fun, to weed junk mail and promotional spam in one email and the good stuff in another. Sign up for words of the day, quotes of the day, jokes of the day, The #CURation…anything and everything fun, uplifting, inspirational, and good to start everyday off right, and to look to when moments get tough or tiresome.
Whether you have 5 minutes or 5 hours, you can have some fun today.
And if you need ideas fo’ mo’ fun, be sure to catch these 13 *unexpected* ways to have fun in yo’ 20’s!
What’s your favorite way to have fun, both when you have a small snippet of time, and when you’ve got a whole afternoon o’ fun ahead of ya?
I’d lovelovelove to hear your own personal faves, so drop ’em in a comment below! You guys leave the *best* comments, and I promise I’m playing catch up this week from the honeymoon…so much goodness from y’all to catch up on STAT!
P.S. Now…it’s time for a fabulous giveaway! I’ve teamed up with an amazing group of bloggers to give THREE WINNERS a chance to win a $175 Sephora Gift Card! Simply enter below via the Rafflecopter widget. You’ll receive one entry per completion. This giveaway is open internationally and runs until 10/17. Winner will be announced here. Good Luck!
