Work vs. Play

Food for Thought

Well designed work can and should resemble play.

The essence of work is about making decisions; exercising choice within the limits and boundaries that are imposed upon us and choice and decisions to achieve an outcome; a goal or purpose. And all of this takes place over well or poorly defined timeframes.

Interestingly enough many activities which we might not ordinarily associate with ‘work’:

  • A round of recreational golf
  • Cooking a meal for family and friends
  • A lazy afternoon spent fishing
  • And…

All conform to the abovementioned definition of work!

And yet people will say:

  • Golf that’s not work I have fun when I am doing it!
  • Cooking? That’s not work I actually enjoy it!
  • Fishing? That’s not work it helps me to relax
  • And…

So it seems to us that employment work (as distinct from home, play or community work) has given ‘work’ a bad name…

And this is a leadership challenge.