Life's Not A Cabaret Old Son, It's A Game

in gamification •  7 years ago  (edited)

I was sitting in one of my favourite coffee shops on the weekend (I live on the Sunshine Coast of Queensland, Australia, one of the most beautiful places on earth) and I was watching this little kid standing at the railing and looking out at the sea.

He was about 3 years old and he was totally mesmerized by the railing. Not the view, just the railing.

He was tapping it, and pushing it, and resting his head on it and was totally oblivious to everything else around him.

He was only 3 after all, so at that age there's probably not a lot else his mind is thinking of than what's right in front of him, but it made me think (again), of what a good friend of mine (@matttrainer) always says about playing your own game.

That is, when you were a kid, you weren't worried about how a game was constructed, why a game was played the way it was or anything else related to the game. You just came up with a game and made the rules up as you went along. Just like this little kid playing his own "have fun with the railing" game.

You would spend hours playing your game and would probably go without food and water forever until your mother called you in for dinner.

And even then you didn't want to stop.

You changed the rules as you went along, according to outcomes that occurred during the game. You created rules for entry into the game, like, you needed to have 3 marbles to play, or whatever. You created winners and losers according to your rules.

The point is, nothing else mattered except the game.

As adults, it's one of the first things that we forget. We get caught up in "things" and stuff" and "work".

Life is a game and it needs to be played according to your rules. If you're going to play by somebody else's rules, then you want to at least make sure that you're not being screwed and that the ultimate outcome for you is a good one.

That can take a bit of work, especially if your mind is stuck in a mode where you are not taking responsibility for your own actions such as having the attitude that the "government will take care of things".

News flash Jack. That ain't happening.

Not now, not ever.

Playing your own game is your responsibility and it's up to you to find out how to do it. Here, in this steemit community, I believe you will find the answers you've been looking for.

Because let's face it. You KNOW that things are not happening the way they should be. Something's broken and needs fixing.

The first thing you can do is take the time to watch little kids play (not in a creepy way - don't be that person) and learn all you can from them about "undivided attention".

You had it once. Go out and find it again. But be careful, your new way of thinking might just make your head explode
exploding head.jpg

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Nice one matey. My head is already exploding ;-)

Thanks Brian. You of all people will take that concept to the moon. #readyplayerwhat

  ·  7 years ago (edited)

Absolutely. I taught kids for most of my life, and really .. they taught me more.

Learn from them every day I do.

Another thing we have in common - I started my formal education, i.e. first grade, in Brisbane. Eagle Junction school in about 1965. We lived there about 8 months. So I have a little Ausiness in me.

Ha, cool.