We tend to outgrow play as life gets serious. However, this article suggests reclaiming it may be key to creativity, connection, and wellbeing.
The author digs into Cas Holman’s book “Playful: How Play Shifts Our Thinking, Inspires Connection, and Sparks Creativity” who argues that free play is essential even for adults.
Key Takeaways:
- Play Is a Primal Instinct: Holman frames play not as a childhood privilege but as a fundamental human drive, as primal as fear or desire, with profound implications for creativity, curiosity, and emotional connection at every age.
- The Adult Voice Takes Over: During adolescence, a growing self-consciousness about how we are perceived gradually drowns out the play voice — and by adulthood, opportunities for genuine free play have become severely limited.
- Three Steps to a Playful Mindset: Holman’s framework for reclaiming play rests on three practices: embracing possibility by opening to unfamiliarity and abstraction, releasing judgment by letting go of the idea that there is a “right” way to play, and reframing success by choosing curiosity over the fear of failure.
Greater Good explores the science of a meaningful life.
