The Return of Recess

Championing the Return of Recess
Rediscover life through
games and leverage
the limitless luster of
youth we all possess. –
Jonathan Albin

Jasper
Chessboard at
The Pawnderosa
Dice
Collection

When you are asked if you can do a job, tell 'em, 'Certainly I can!'
Then get busy and find out how to do it. --Theodore Roosevelt

Pleasure in the job puts perfection in the work. --Aristotle
What do YOU consider to be ‘fun’?
Physical, mental, spiritual? Something else?
Singular event or ‘State of Mind’?
Vicarious vs. Participative?
How can it be shared? Conveyed or expressed? Who can enjoy it?
Can something difficult to accomplish also be ‘fun’?

I don't know that there are any short cuts to doing a good job.
Sandra Day O'Connor
Limitedevent–time,conditions,materials,characteristics.
Toomuchofagoodtimelosesitswonder.
Preciousnessoftheexperiencecanbevariedaswell.
Engagesindividualaswellasgroups
Participation,evenifvicarious,isarequirementforanexperiencetobe‘fun’
Ifatreeintheforesthasfunbyitself,doesanyonenotice?
Educationalnatureornuance.
Frominfancy,weareprogrammedtopositivelyrespondtolearning.
Thelearningcanbeasstrongorasweakastheengagementis orchestratedtobe.

I don't know that there are any short cuts to doing a good job.
Sandra Day O'Connor

Work harder on yourself than you do on your job. --Jim Rohn
 Not at the workplace.
 Conference Board reflects a
continuing negative trend
 Conference Board also
educated business owners: an
unhappy employee is NOT an
unproductive employee.
 Thus, satisfaction is anticipated
to continue the negative slide
for the foreseeable future.
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
1987 1995 2000 2005 2010
US Job Satisfaction
Job Satisfaction

Work harder on yourself than you do on your job. --Jim Rohn
 Not at home.
 Average free time a person
has per day: 2.6 hours. TV
time: 4.0 hours
 Note the numbers… no one
has time for it.
 No wonder we aren’t finding
fun in our lives… there isn’t
any room for it anymore. We
are too busy.

Find a job you like and you add five days to every week. --H. Jackson Brown, Jr.
1. URGENT overtook IMPORTANT.
2. “Making Fun” vs. “Having Fun”.
3. Conformity and Anonymity vs. Uniqueness and Imagination.
4. OSFA mentality overtakes Creative Experimentation.
5. Safety and Security vs. Freedom and Responsibility

 Learn how to recognize the signs.
 Esthetics : “I’ll know it when I feel it”.
 Escapism: “Just get away from it all”
 Cathartics: “I need to play through it somehow”
 Prosthetic: “If I could do this, I might”
 Then, reward the behavior…
 Schedule the time for “recess”
 Create windows of opportunity for fun
 Comprehend the energy that such provides
 Share the experience with others in your life
Not every job is a good job. -- Henry Cavill

The purpose has always been the same. See if these don’t reveal it.
 Always seemed to start at an odd moment; 10:09, 12:57, 3:35
 Equitably broke up the day into more “bite-sized pieces”
 You got to hang around the people you liked.
 You couldn’t take your schoolwork with you when you went.
 The power of social strength evolved
 Usually held just before the really tough subjects
The best preparation for good work tomorrow is to do good work today.
Elbert Hubbard

The best preparation for good work tomorrow is to do good work today.
Elbert Hubbard

There's never a surefire good career move except doing good work.
Seth Green
 Coffee breaks, cigarette breaks, sanity breaks
 Meal Breaks
 Paid Time Off / ‘Sick Days’ / Mental Health Days
 In all these cases, the time is too short, too busy, too tightly defined

You only do good work when you're taking risks and pushing yourself.
Sally Hawkins
 Content and Intent : give employer what he pays for
Statistics show that workers at the office don’t do as much work
 Combine blocks of time into ‘working blocks’
 Time is the only resource we treat like a commodity.
 Learn the meaning of the Urgent and the Important
 Which you focus on determines your success
 Give yourself permission to be the person you are.
Consult with your employer, to share how you work the best

I have been impressed with the urgency of doing. Knowing is not enough; we
must apply. Being willing is not enough; we must do.
--Leonardo da Vinci
 Physical activity – walking, jogging, jumping rope?
 Sports – inter-office basketball? Tennis?
 Reading, meditating, relaxation, maybe ‘power nap’?
 Anything that does not require batteries, wires, headphones…
 Build communication skills by having directed conversations
 Short-form games or if space permits, ongoing long-form game?

I have been impressed with the urgency of doing. Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Being willing
is not enough; we must do.
--Leonardo da Vinci
 Daily down-shift to re-boot the brain.
 Disconnect from work to allow internal processing
 Unburden momentarily from managers & meetings
 Engage the subconscious when you consciously disengage
 Liberate limitless luster of youth by finding the fun in fundamentals

 Cast “Seriousness” aside.
 Escapism – games that let you just “let go”
 Esthetics – games that feel good just “because”
 Give and Get the Benefit of the Doubt
 Esthetics – winner, loser not a factor
 Catharsis – be what or who you want to be.
 Dare to live the dream
 Esthetics – feel the freedom of pure fun
 Prosthesis – Games are where Dreams really do come true, if only for a while.
 Develop the proper “Attitude of Laxitude”
 Catharsis – the active step of disengaging
 Escapism – Choosing to move into a different lane, even a different course.
 Give yourself permission
 Prosthesis – Do what you never dared to dream
 Escapism – Expand your experience beyond your bonds
 Embrace the ‘comfort food’ of fun
 Prosthesis – Everyone wants to be the “Captain”.
 Catharsis – the cure for what ails you.

 Games, by definition, meet the objectives of “Recess”
 The person remains engaged, alert, and interested.
 The location, area, and time restrictions only define which work best,
not what is possible.
 Game options are literally limitless.
 Types, style, game experience are virtually infinite.
 Skill sets challenged are therefore myriad as well.
 Leadership can be promoted, tested in microcosm, to educate as well.
 Game complexity is as varied as other characteristics.
 Skills develop with use, not with training alone.
 Games have no bias
 By their nature, games overcome prejudices, obstructions to
communication.
 Players can interact without barriers or challenges.

Cover Your A$$ets– Grandpa Beck’s Games
Acquire – Avalon Hill Games
Carcassonne– Z-Man Games
Tsuro – Calliope Games
Snake Oil– Out of the Box Publishing
Wits & Wagers – North Star Games
Choose One – Looney Labs

1. Close your eyes gently. Breathe in & out fully, exactly 14 times.
If you make it past ten without being relaxed, I would be surprised.
2. Push your seat back. Put your hands on your head, and lean back slightly Repeat #1.
This releases endorphins, and adrenaline. Reduces cortisol in the bloodstream.
3. Stand, chest out, gut in as much as possible. Hands on hips, fists closed. Repeat #1.
1. Attention-Getter. Considered statistically to be a position of power and control.
4. Find one set of at least 10 steps. Ascend and descend at your own pace, repeating #1.
1. Increases heart rate slightly if you match breathing to steps alternating in and out to match left and right.
5. Raise arms, palms up, fingers cupped. Repeat #1.
1. Position of triumph. Endorphins and adrenaline are released.
6. Find safe, quiet space. Scream at the top of your lungs. Exactly twice.
1. Quick release of Adrenaline, if you empty lungs completely on both. Third one calls the authorities.
7. Stretch arms, legs in widest stance, reaching to the skies as far as possible. Repeat #1.
1. Increases blood flow, and opens airway and circulatory system Invigorates entire lymph system.

The biggest question: will you go to your grave with your games un-played?

The Return of Recess

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