Here's a professional tip that most people find difficult to accept, believe, and add to their strategic development: PLAY. It seems so simple, easy, and kinda childish. However dedicating time for and even better scheduling time in your days, weeks, months, and quarters is one of the best methods of making sure you create space to stay innovative.
Yes, innovation needs space. Innovation demands a place that feels safe and receptive. Why? Because innovation is the process of creating solutions. And if you are in business, then you are in the business of selling solutions. Not only are you selling solutions, but being a CEO is the art of "putting out fires". Problems are part of the growth process. Growth requires you to learn how to fail forward and do it as quickly as possible.
Surely you can see WHY you need to carve out time to let your mind, body, and spirit just BE. Because that's what PLAY is rooted in? Play is a developmental tool, which is why I am big on including it in your strategic development for your life and/or business. When scheduling and planning your "playtime," I highly recommend NOT overcomplicating it; otherwise, you turn it into just another task to check off your to-do list. And the last thing any of us needs is "another task" to complete.
Here are the main reasons WHY allowing yourself the space to PLAY will not only make you more innovative but a better entrepreneur, and more importantly a whole human:
1. Comic Relief:
Yes, I know "life is not all fun and games", well…technically, that is a choice because your life can be whatever the hell you want it to be. And I believe in adding as much laughter to my days as possible. Laughter lightens the spirit, elevates your mood, and invites joy to enter the room.
2. Diversion:
I tell my clients all the time…" the solution never comes while sitting at your computer." What I mean is your spirit needs to be distracted from all the chaos and confusion that the mind creates. The mind is a powerful thing. However, it can also be one of the most dangerous when under pressure. PLAY gives your mind a necessary break to take a backseat so that your heart can lead.
3. Spontaneous:
While I am big on scheduling time for PLAY, I am huge on NOT scheduling the actual "way to play". I call this "leaving space for God". Others refer to it as being spontaneous. Spontaneity is one of the best methods for breaking out of a rut. And once we break out, we receive the glorious gift of a new perspective. Sometimes we do not need a new strategy. Sometimes we need a new perspective.
4. Patience:
PLAY allows our inner child to have a seat at the table of our life. Our inner child is our most honest, non-tainted, non-anxious, non-worried, and non-fearful self. Yet, like all children, our inner child will require us to be patient. Patience with our desires, our failures, and with the pace of life. PLAY says, "it is okay to take a breath, recognize, acknowledge, and enjoy the exact moment we are experiencing without having to explain or rush through the process.
I close with this, PLAY is not just for children. PLAY is and will always be the stage that allows our imagination a place to be seen and heard. PLAY is not something we "grow" out of, it is what we should seek more often. If you realize that you have not played in a minute, don’t worry it can be done in an instant. Struggling with what to do? Close your eyes, take a breath, and remember what made you happy as a kid, and then DO that thing today.
WHO AM I?
I’m Kandis Troutman, The Creative Architect. I'm a mother, teacher, and spiritual seeker focused on purpose walking, and serving others. I help women activate their God-given power so they can transform their purpose into a prosperous business.
Thanks for reading my post. I try to publish new posts weekly, but I believe in leaving room for God, which means there are no guarantees. But check in often and let me know what content awakens your spirit and I’ll be more than happy to share my experiences.
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