It is so easy to get caught up in day-to-day life and not think much about how we’re living. Are you doing things out of habit or obligation? Are you prioritizing the things that are most important to you? Are you enjoying yourself?

That last one is one of the most important questions we can ask ourselves and we should be doing it on a regular basis. When is the last time you really took a look at how much fun you’re having? We get caught up in working towards that promotion, or waiting for the right time, or hitting the next deadline that we forget to have fun in the process.

Why does having fun matter?

Maybe you’re wondering what it really matters? Once you get ‘done’ with whatever season you’re in, then you can have fun, right? There are two reasons that logic doesn’t often work out.

Reason 1 – you get to the finish line and then something else comes up. There will always be more things to do and goals to set. We tend to think the outcome creates the intended condition (i.e. getting the raise will make you happier) so we’re always focused on getting to where we’re going, but really the condition creates the outcome. It’s much easier to find happiness and then actually enjoy pursuing a promotion or raise. And that way doesn’t exclude happiness on the way to the outcome. Why strive for happiness at a future date when you can experience it right now? In fact, usually finding that feeling will get you there faster which brings me to…

Reason 2 – your vibrational state affects your physical reality. Hellooooo law of attraction. If you’re miserable getting to the raise, you’re going to continue to be miserable after the raise. You have to practice finding happiness every day! It’s a state that you can set your intentions to achieve. Check out this post on the emotional scale to learn more about changing your emotional set point.

How can we have more fun?

There are tons of ways to have more fun including dancing, creating a joyful morning routine, spending time with friends, doing hobbies, watching funny YouTube videos, or petting a cute puppy, but one of my favorite ways to be intentional about creating fun is to make a just-for-fun list. Basically, this is a list of things you would like to do but don’t normally make time for. Bonus points for trying new things because that’s almost always fun!

Here’s an example:

·       Read a new book

·       Go kayaking

·       Try an art class

·       Take a camping trip

·       Plan a spa-day

·       Make a new meal

·       Do a creative project at home

·       Throw a theme party

·       Plan a trip

·       Have a picnic in the park

These don’t have to be big or expensive projects, but having a list of things that would bring you joy that you can reference is so helpful! You don’t even have to commit to doing all of them. The whole point here is to have fun and take the pressure off. But we all know crossing things off a list is fun too 😊

Having a list like this is a great way to stay intentional about enjoying your life instead of going through the motions. It’s so fun to look back and see how many things you’ve tried that made you happy! So how about it? What would be on your just-for-fun list?