What if your greatest legacy isnât what you buildâbut how much fun you have?  Hi Fun Friend, Are you at that point in your life thinking about what type of legacy or impact you are leaving behind in this world to make it a wee, tiny bit better than when you arrived in it? I am. And Iâve been thinking about this for a while now as I head past mid-50-something this year, on the windy road to 60-something (with expectations of lots of wild, fun road stops along the way). So⌠what about leaving behind a Fun Legacy to those that you touch? Those you influence? Those you mentor, care and matter to you? Heck, even the strangers who may be watching. A few years ago, my husband and I went on a backpacking adventure around beautiful Thailand for a month. We cycled for a week along the coastline and then took out the maps hopping from island to island, all with our dusty backpacks in tow. This doesnât seem off the charts, I know â well, until my husband pointed out that on one of the many boats we were on, filled with other backpackers, we were by far the oldest. And I am talking, by far. As I now noticed, I was surrounded by 20 and 30-year-olds â and surrounded by them for most of the trip. Huh. As we continued our journey, my eyes were open to the age difference, and yup⌠lots of young backpackers. What I also noticed in the conversations we had was a lot of âgood for youâ and âwow, I hope I donât ever stop backpacking.â I realized this was in response to seeing us â ahem â older folks backpacking. What the?! This got me thinking. Could a legacy â a Fun Legacy â be just as simple as role-modeling your actions? Showing that⌠⢠Age doesnât need to put you in a box. If itâs your kind of fun, do it. ⢠Making time and prioritizing fun to balance the pressures in your life is really important. ⢠Being playful and silly is good for your mental health. ⢠Keeping yourself accountable to regularly having fun is a tool we can all have in our toolbox. ⢠If we fall off the fun tracks and arenât laughing enough, we can recognize it and rebuild our daily fun habits. ⢠Guilt, time, or judgment donât have to be roadblocks to having fun â because fun is good for our health, our Fun Health. Sometimes a legacy is simply showing someone whatâs possible. Psychologists call this Social Learning Theory â the idea that we learn how to live by watching others. We donât need to be told whatâs possible; we need to see it. Legacy, then, isnât just what we leave behind. Itâs what we make visible. (Insert mic drop.) đ¤ A Fun Legacy is about being seen living fully. And without saying a word, youâre teaching a younger version of you, a friend, your family, or a stranger on a boat: You should always prioritize laughing, playing, and fun. You donât have to outgrow fun. You donât have to earn fun. A life lived with zest, vibrancy, and spirit might be one of the greatest legacies of all. Hereâs to role-modeling living fully. Hereâs to leaving behind a Fun Legacy đ Treena, Your Life Fun Expert x PS. ON THE FINDING FUN EXPERIMENT PODCAST THIS WEEK: You hear how the opposite of play isnât work⌠itâs depression. When adults stop playing, research shows we become more rigid, less emotionally flexible, more stressed and more pessimistic. We also talk relationshipsâbecause play is intimate, and when it disappears, connection fades. (Hello: phones, stress, rejection fear, mismatched timing⌠all the things.) LISTEN HERE!   |
| Helping people and organizations build fun habits in their lives or workplaces to improve wellness, passion and performance. www.minddoodles.ca treena@minddoodles.ca I 778.885.5750 |
