How to play the game of life

Our modern world assumes there has to be a rigid separation between work and play. But the conventional path of finding a job and climbing the ladder of advancement is something that no longer works for many people. A growing number of people are asking: how can I build a life I don’t feel the need to escape from?

It’s possible to do work that genuinely feels like play, and when you pursue this path it unlocks all kinds of incredible opportunities and puts you on the path to mastery. In this video I’ll share some ideas and psychological strategies on how you can do this, and we’ll look at the remarkable story of Yoky Matsuoka.

CHAPTERS

00:00 - The rigid distinction of work and play in modern life
03:19 - Part One: Yoky Matsuoka’s Story
04:41 - Narrative identity and the story of your life
08:17 - David Galenson and Conceptual innovators vs. Experimental innovators
10:14 - Peter Sims and the power of making “Little Bets” in your life
13:19 - Carol Dweck and the power of growth mindsets
18:45 - Part Two: Robert Greene and how to reach for mastery
19:37 - Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi on creativity

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[ModernIntuitionist]

I'd love to know your own experiences with how you've approached your own life with play in the comments. What has been really effective and powerful for you?

PS. Please beware of scammers in the comment section impersonating me. I will never ask you to contact me through "telegram" or ask for any random payments of any kind. My comments will only ever appear with a checkmark at the end of the name "Modern Intuitionist." If you see any such scams kindly press the report button.

[bethanienaylor]

"The master has failed even more times than the beginner has tried."
What a great quote! I'm going to use that.

[ThePapawhisky]

When I was a child I was constantly criticized and told I was stupid. Although naturally curious and playful, I grew to fear failure. This really handicapped me. In my mid-twenties I started to stretch and break out of the identity I was taught. I’m a retired engineer now and my life has been full of learning and growth. I’m very fortunate and grateful.

[caseyshaunthomas]

“How can I build a life I don’t feel the need to escape from?” This is the penultimate question to answer for anyone that is aimless and world weary. You’ve earned my subscription, sir.

[satyajitmalliksatyajitmallik]

If you ever listen to anything while reading comments, let it be this - go to borlest and read the book whispers of manifestation, then come back and thank me

[kathleenhensley]

Very, very nice... I'm a widow in my 70's - that is old by our civilization's standards. I was raised in a fixed mindset enviroment, but I am naturally, I think, attracted to the growth mindset idea. Learn new things. Nothing I can't master if I start at the foundations and build upwards. That conflict has always been paramount inside of my consciousness. Should I just give up on life? Sit down and do nothing? That doesn't feel right to me. Just because I am old by the world's standards, it doesn't mean I am old. My body hurts constantly and I'm trying to change that with diet and exercise For me, my husband was the center of my life. He was my beloved for nearly 5 decades. I feel like I am standing in the ashes my married life, been doing so for 4 very long and challenging years. . I can't seem to go on, but I know I must. But what do I want to do? Is my life nearly over? I could live for another 20 yrs or I could die, tomorrow. Little steps seems to be the best advice. Hardest thing, sometimes, is turning off my own negative voices, the echoes of the adults that surrounded me in my youth.

[thisistheron]

I’m living an amazing life full of struggle, fear, with a joyful attitude that has blessed me with the most random luck on the planet. Truly I wish to share my energy with others so they can have my positive outlook, but it’s so difficult to put into words 😅

[NoriDeutsche]

I've been feeling I'm lost for a while and been watching tons of videos and reading books about how to live, to feel happy etc. This is one of the best videos in the internet. Thank you.

[KootFloris]

I'm having such a play life. I made money with more than 80+ job titles, and all were creative, crazy or even out of the box. The core word, he doesn't say enough is play. Play is how nature invented learning. It engages you whole. Play with everything. Everything = play.

[bobeeman]

This is a masterpiece that encapsulates the capability of people to live free. I was born a boy in a hole and learned many of these lessons climbing out and it feels like i have lived at least 4 lives, and i am at the beginning of my 5th and most ambitious. It's daunting, scary every time. But you just have to believe in yourself, steady the ship, learn from your mistakes, and accept the outcome as your own. And always get up and try again, even if its something different. Own it, the good and the bad or you just won't grow to your potential. I remain hopeful i will get there and will try to enjoy the journey.

[mavicityrelayson]

It seems like her parents supported her. That’s a big factor to success. It’s a foundational factor. If you have CPTSD, please don’t castigate yourself if your trauma did not turn into growth. We have different baselines. We are not lost yet.

[jedics]

I dont know if this will help anyone but I had the oppertunity to build a house on a truck with zero previous experience which was by far the biggest project ever to me, it was duanting and freaked me out so what I did was make a deal with myself that if I took on the project that any time I felt overwhelmed or stuck that I could stop whatever I was doing and go do something else for as long as I wanted until I felt like trying again. This one thing took all the pressure and anxiety out of it and allowed me to think about problems at a speed I could handle, it utterly transformed my idea of what I was capable of if I can operate under no pressure. I simply had no idea how good I was at visualizing problems and solutions because I also didn't know how my brain gets completely shut down when experienceing anxiety.

[leonniceday]

Some practical take aways for me are:
1. Internalize the locus of control (at least partially). Believe that you can, you can help change your life!
2. Your brain changes and adapts with every experience, you're getting better, even (and especially) after a failure!
3. Each of us (most?) can find at least 10% of our time to dedicate to something creative that trully attracts us, that we always wanted to do. That 10% time is our window of opportunity, and if nothing else, it will make our lives more satisfying/meaningfull.
Because, obviously, most of us are not lucky to inherit a fortune or have someone else pay our bills.

[AdrenaMonic]

I love how you magically fit everything together like a masterful puzzle. Also, excellent movie choices! "Office Space" is a damn classic! Movie scenes, Book quotes, Philosophical concepts, sound, graphics, production...You are a supreme artist, top tier quality! And to top it all off, the LESSONS! Thank you for taking the time to create this.

[brycenwhitesides]

What I learned: become more playful and curious like you were as a child. Ask myself: what is something that is like play to me but looks like work to others? And have a growth mindset looking at the circumstances in life as opportunities to become stronger.

[BerkanoRose]

I learned that life was a game through some study of science.
I walked through life this way, and it has given me an answer in hard times. I create.
Great video very freeing.

[andrewpepperoni]

When you learn something ans you failed - Congratulations, now you know an instance of a thing that doesn't work, basically you learned something. Keep going.

[kotofren]

Alan Watts really changed my mind about how I see life and myself as a whole, man... With 25 years, I feel like I just recently began to really live, and that I'm finally breaking the chains of the illusions I created for myself in the past, and finally on the proccess to achieve the true potential to be what I can be and achieve the best life I can live.

[zenamerica]

Programs like this should have 1M views in a month.

[Abrpatel]

There are many ways to exchange energy within the human network, one being giving people emotions they want to feel day to day, but can’t for whatever reason. The networks that do it are always active and constantly growing, YouTube being a web of relationships where it’s primary attraction is emotion of various spectrums. The singular emotion I get from watching this video is singular and universal: Hope. Hope your life if filled with as much hope as your give to others.