How to Make Drudgery into a Delightful Diversion

I’ve noticed something interesting lately. A lot of adults are playing games.

No, I don’t mean Parcheesi or tennis.

I mean games specifically designed to enhance one’s experience of another activity. And I am convinced that this is one of the simplest and most powerful tools for improving your productivity while increasing your enjoyment of the process.

First, let me provide some simple (and potentially obvious) thoughts on games.

There are two types of games: competitive games and play games.

Competitive games are the ones adults typically play. These games have rules. You keep score. There are winners and losers.

There is an endless list of competitive games including Monopoly, tennis, football, poker. Board games, cards games, and sports fall into this category.

Competitive games have rules that are defined by someone else (the sport’s governing body, the game manufacturer, or accepted conventions). The duration of the game is dictated by a clock, the score/points, or the amount of money you have available. Winning is good. Losing is bad.

Contrast competitive games with play games.

Play games are the ones typically played by children.

Play games typically have no rules. Or the rules are made up in the moment by the players. There are no winners and losers. The “success” of a game is solely determined by the players’ enjoyment. The game has no defined ending. It ends when the players decide it ends. The process is all that really matters.

The key to making any challenging task more fun and productive is to treat it like a play game.

Think of an activity you don’t want to do such as cleaning the house, making cold calls, or approaching a stranger.

Next, think of a game that could be fun that incorporates that activity.

A friend of mine, Donna, works from home. One week, her husband, Fred, was away on a business trip. Although Donna wanted to make sure that the house was clean and in order by the time Fred returned, she dreaded doing the housework. To make the time pass, she decided to play a game. The game was clean as a way of showing her love and affection for her husband. It was no longer about the cleaning. The time passed quickly and she enjoyed the process. With every crumb vacuumed and dish cleaned, she thought of her husband.

Yesterday I spent the day with a great friend of mine, Susanne. We drove 2 hours to the casino for a day of fun and entertainment. The main reason for the trip was to see a fantastic sax player, Candy Dulfer, perform. Candy was scheduled to take the stage at 7PM for a general admission show. There were no reserved seats or even the guarantee of a seat. The doors opened at 5:30. And that posed a dilemma.

Our favorite American football team, the New England Patriots, was playing an important game that would not end until 7PM. What should we do? Should we watch most of the football game and risk not getting into the concert? Or should we miss half of the football game so that we can be assured of a nice seat? Susanne had a third option. She decided to play a game.

The game was to see if she could get us on the guest list. This would allow us to watch the entire football game and still be assured a great seat. Although Susanne’s game had a specific outcome, for her, it was the game that mattered, not the outcome. I have never seen her so motivated and energized. She spoke with everyone. First she befriended the pit boss at the blackjack table who suggested she try to meet someone associated with the concert. Next thing I know, Susanne disappears for quite some time. Upon her return she says little, but is smiling. A little bit later she disappears again. This time she has the news: she got us on the guest list and we had a private booth right next to the stage.

For me, this was an incredible treat. Yes, the concert was fantastic. But the greater treat was seeing Susanne so jazzed up. The game transformed her into a people meeting machine. And this, from someone who considers herself to be an introvert.

Games can turn drudgery into a delightful diversion. The key is to find a game that works uniquely for you. Feel free to change the game if it stops being fun. There are no rules. And you may be surprised to find that there can be a huge payoff to play.

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Goal-Free Living in Best of O (Oprah) and More

There are 4 books I want to draw your attention to:

1. This weekend I discovered that Goal-Free Living is featured in O’s Guide to Life: The Best of O, the Oprah Magazine.  In fact, the article entitled, “Are Your Goals Holding You Back?” is highlighted on the inside flap of the book. 

2. My story, “Confessions of a Goalaholic,” is featured in the new book, Chicken Soup for the Soul: Life Lessons for Loving the Way You Live: 7 Essential Ingredients for Finding Balance and Serenity.

3. We are giving away a bonus gift, our 35 page “Goal-Free Living Discussion Guide,” if you buy just one copy of Guy Finley’s, The Secret of Letting Go.  In total, you get 72 bonus items for buying this book.

4. Don’t forget that we now offer our new book, Stephen Shapiro’s Little Book of BIG Innovation Ideas as an eBook for only $9.95. 

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How Concerned Should You Be?

Imagine the following situation.

You go to your doctor for a physical examination.  You test positive for a spreadable, yet treatable virus-based disease. 

You discover that the testing is somewhat accurate.  If you have the disease, you will be diagnosed positive 75% of the time and negative 25% of the time.  If you don’t have the disease, you will be diagnosed as negative 75% of the time and positive 25% of the time. 

You also learn that 1% of the population has this disease.  That is, one in one hundred people have contracted this virus.

Given that you tested positive, what are the odds that you have the disease?  75%?  50%?  25%? How concerned should you really be? 

Interestingly, there is less than a 3% chance that you actually have the disease. 

Here’s how the math works. 

Imagine 10,000 people. 

100 people will have the disease (1%), of which 75 (75%) will accurately test positive.

9,900 will not have the disease (99%), of which 2,475 (25%) will falsely test positive.

Therefore, of 2,550 people (75+2475) who test positive, only 75 in fact have the disease.  75/2,550 = .0294 which is less than 3%.  The rest are false positives.

If this disease is totally treatable if diagnosed, I might be more concerned if I tested negative.  25 people who should be treated won’t be, and those individuals will continue to spread the disease.

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Design Emotion First

Here’s a useful innovation tip.

Designworks, a division of BMW, designs cars and other products such as cell phones, computers, and tractors. Their design process is particularly interesting. Instead of starting with functions and features, they start with emotion.

Designers first meet with company executives, employees, and customers in order to capture the emotion that customers will feel when they use this product. This is done using sketch artists rather than words. Only after everyone agrees on these emotions will the design of the form and style begin.

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Copenhagen: Save the Date

I am speaking in Copenhagen this weekend. 

On October 5 from 1PM to 4PM I am speaking at an event being organized by Alexander Kjerulf.  If you speak Danish, you can learn more and register by clicking here.

On October 6 from 3PM to 4PM I am speaking at Junior Chamber International’s National Kongres.

If you are in the area, I hope to see you there.

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