Do you take time out each day to have fun or play? Playing doesn’t need to be a planned event, it can be done in several ways, alone as well as by connecting with others. Consider some of the following ways to add daily fun to your life:

• Sharing a joke with family, friends and colleagues
• Playing games—card games, board games, computer games, or gaming consoles
• Playing social sports
• Allowing yourself to be adsorbed by dancing or singing to your favourite loud music
• Do something different and out of the ordinary like playing in puddles or skipping in the rain
• Watch your favourite comedy shows and enjoy the humour and belly laughs
• Play with children or pets
• Go to the local park and swing on the swings or enjoy a slide on the slippery dip
• Enjoy a holiday or mini break to a theme park—you don’t need to have children with you to go on the rides
• Go to the movies and be absorbed in the surround sound
• Take up a new sport or join a club

By  not taking yourself so seriously for at least five or ten minutes hopefully longer, you can recharge your mind, reduce your stress and improve your mental health. Playing brings people together and helps to strengthen family, friendships and teams.

Consider ways that you can add more fun to your life. Think outside the box, connect with your true self and grow through play and having fun.