Most kids play a lot. It’s just part of being who they are, not so? Take a moment and think back to your own childhood. Can you remember?
As a kid there is also no right or wrong way to play. You just do it. You don’t care who is watching or how how bizarre the playing might be either.
For kids this is also their natural way of releasing and detaching from any feeling they no longer want to experience. This is why you might yell at your kid, even make him or her cry, and then within moments they can be “over it” completely when they return to playing. They distract themselves from the feeling they did not like and in doing so, they release it and move on. They naturally bring about their self relief.
It’s sad that as we get older, we accept that we have to “grow up” and “be responsible” and in so doing, believe we have to abandon ‘play’, one of the most valuable releasing tools with which we came into this world.
So instead when someone says something to you as a young adult that makes you feel judged, inferior and less than who you are, what do you do?
It’s quite likely you feel hurt, angry and upset. You tell others about it over and over again. You think about it constantly. You write about it in your diary. Then you see them again so it all comes hurtling back for another round. Although the feeling may fade, does it go for good or do you file it without even knowing under R for “Resentment” where it can join all other resentment to fester for the rest of your life?
Wouldn’t it have been a whole lot healthier if you had simply rushed out into a field, done ten handstands and forgotten about the matter altogether?
Lighten up.... be more playful.... distract yourself
Charlie Todd is an improvisation artist who causes bizarre, hilarious, and unexpected public scenes. In a way his public improvisation creates a legitimate performance art form out of playing the fool in some very serious contexts.
I want to share the following TED video with you that he did earlier this year, firstly because I believe just by watching these scenes you’ll laugh and that’s always beneficial. Also if for some reason you don’t feel the best today, I am sure watching this will make you feel better.
How you feel moment to moment is one of the most important things you can take care of since when you are feeling good you are aligned with your higher self and you allow yourself to easily create whatever you want in your life. This is a critical requirement for allowing the law of attraction to work in your life.
What did you think of the video? Did it make you smile maybe even laugh ?
Do you soothe yourself by being silly ever or are you always in control and responsible?
Have your say in the comments section and please share this post with your followers. Thank you.
Be Happy!
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Marcus: Wow, definitely food for thought and GREAT post!!
I have to admit that I fall into the category of being TOO serious (I’m sure my background as an accountant and “numbers” gal might have something to do with it
) and not taking the time to be silly once in awhile…
This was a good lesson for me to learn; don’t allow life to become so serious that you can’t take the time to be silly!!
Thanks Marcus…
Diane
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Marcus Baker Reply:
November 30th, 2011 at 1:54 am
Hi Diane,
I hear you loud and clear Diane.
I have to consciously take time out daily and be silly which I make sure I do.
I had to grow up and be responsible from a young age and that also resulted in me becoming too serious but I do know what a relief it is to be silly so I make sure I am. LOL
~Marcus
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Hi Marcus,
Funny thing is that I watched this video at the end of last week. I had heard of Charlie and thought it was really great what he had done. I will definitely say this video did make me laugh. I actually posted the one with no pants on my Facebook page last week too. It really got a good ole chuckle.
I don’t hold grudges and I let things go. I learned this some time back that it does me no good to hold onto feelings that will end up just making me miserable. Life’s too short to sweat the small stuff.
I love life, I enjoy life and I always have a good time no matter what I’m doing. I can’t ever see that fading anytime in the near future. Thank goodness for that.
Thank you for sharing this message.
~Adrienne
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Marcus Baker Reply:
November 30th, 2011 at 6:22 am
Hi Adrienne,
My apologies for not responding earlier but I am drowning in spam again and some genuine comments have been lost until I wade through and locate them which is just how I found this comment here.
Isn’t that too funny that you came across Charlie recently too.
You are right about not letting anything or anyone to allow you to feel miserable Adrienne. It’s all within our control.
~Marcus
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Hi Marcus,
I am so touched by this post of yours that reminded us to let Ho and have fun. It is really ok to be silly and let others laugh at us as long as we laugh ourselves. What a way to lighten our souls!
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Marcus Baker Reply:
November 30th, 2011 at 1:42 am
Hi Jimmy,
I love how you say, “What a way to lighten our souls!’ – that is a perfect description of the benefit Jimmy!
~Marcus
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Marcus, aloha. Thank you so much for sharing this delightful video which definitely made me smile. What I liked was when the lady made eye contact with the two Danish gentleman. In that moment you could see the entire experience change for her.
Marcus, I have had and still do enjoy many “silly” moments in my life. To me, they are a part of whatever I am doing that makes it more fun.
When I was in my fund raising days, aside from my hats, I wore a fair number of outrageous outfits as well as put on some outrageous events. The reason people returned to attend my annual events was because they were fun.
Marcus, when something happens that is not in accordance with what I want, how I want to see things or how I want to feel, I very consciously turn my focus elsewhere.
Life is meant to be joyful. The more you laugh, have fun, the better you feel and the better the flow in your life.
Thanks so much, Marcus, for introducing me to Charlie. Love the way he does things. Until next time, aloha. Janet
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Marcus Baker Reply:
November 24th, 2011 at 5:11 am
Janet aloha. I felt sure you would enjoy the video.
What is so interesting Janet is that the day after I published this post I myself was on a very crowded train at peak hour.
As I got on and stood with others I became aware of someone talking loudly and incessantly nearby.
It was a man who was obviously in a world of his own. He was giving an impromptu speech which could easily have been titled, “Why I think all bankers are wankers.”
Much of what he said was very amusing but what I found even more amusing was the faces of the people in the train. Many were emotionless, as if nothing out of the ordinary was on the go. More looked uncomfortable and were I am sure wondering why they had chosen that particular carriage. Maybe it was a carriage of bankers. Ha ha….
As I listened to the man talking I could not help laughing because what he was saying was so funny and as I laughed I connected with one other man was also laughing and the connection between us was so amazingly strong and real.
I immediately thought about Charlie’s video and how sad it is that people just find it so hard to just let go…..
I have no doubt that you are an expert at the art of releasing and allowing while having fun Janet. It is so much easier to enjoy life when you simply let it be fun.
Thank you for your wonderful comment Janet!
~Marcus
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Hi Marcus,
great concept. There’s definitely no way playing wrong or playing right. Isn’t it interesting that there are multi-billion dollar businesses wanting us to tell how we are supposed to spend our spare time ? There are magazines and entire industries telling people the right way to run, to cook, to fish etc. And people follow them and buy stuff because they want to do it right. These businesses only can market to us if and when we fit into their perceptions of how things need to be done.
If we just ran barefoot, we wouldn’t buy running shoes, would we ?
If we just ran intuitively, we wouldn’t buy heart rate monitor watches, would we ?
But of course, we want to be in our own zone, fat burning zone etc.
I did something unusual at least for me (you know I am a green) which isn’t even particularly weird, but I had to leave my shell…karaoke on an American cruise ship. I sang one solo (King of pain) which was really painful and two duets with a friend from France (99 red balloons and Do you really want to hurt me)
Well, we had a great time and we didn’t care if we sang the right way or the wrong way.
Thanks for sharing your insights and the great video.
Be blessed
Oliver
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Marcus Baker Reply:
November 24th, 2011 at 4:55 am
Hi Oliver,
You bring such a wonderful comment to this post about how so easily we become enslaved to to the opinions of others on both a personal and business level. Thank you.
Nobody wants to feel wrong because when you feel wrong, you may be inclined to believe that you’re not good enough after all. Of course it’s highly unlikely there’s any genuine relationship to be had here but it’s a tricky situation for most humans to process in the moment.
I have more and more stopped taking any notice of what others think about what I am doing and how I am doing it and what blissful relief it is.
Oliver I hope you took some video footage of the Karaoke on the ship? I can see you doing it and well done to you for not caring whether what eventuated was right or not.
It would have been perfect anyway since what mattered most would have been the feeling of freedom you enjoyed not the outcome according to others.
Even the Bible says “make a joyful noise” not “please sing in tune”
Pleased you enjoyed the video and thanks for the great comment.
~Marcus
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Perfect! Thank you so much. You made my day.
Loved the video. I love to play randomly. My kids get a kick out of some of the things we do on a whim. I remember as a kid thinking, “I never want to be like THAT when I grow up!” when I saw the seriousness of the adults around me. Life is meant to be enjoyed.
Thanks for lightening my mood. I really needed it!
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Marcus Baker Reply:
November 24th, 2011 at 4:32 am
Hi Betsy,
Awesome.. that is what I intended this post to do. Oh it is such a relief to just lighten up and choose to feel better than we might do without realizing.
Being silly does it for me every time. We all have this treasure within. We simply have to express it.
~Marcus
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Great video and so very true Marcus. Being a grown up is over -rated. I am all about having fun as much as I can.
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Marcus Baker Reply:
November 24th, 2011 at 4:27 am
Hi Justin,
One of the biggest and hardest lessons I ever learned was to be like a child again but it has led me to a life of much relief. Thanks for the comment.
~Marcus
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Hi Marcus!
This was a very lovely post. I have a small boy and i enjoy watching him playing and just being silly. He is making me laugh 24 hours per day. the way that he is playing is simply adorable. He plays around like no one is watching him, and he doesnt mind if he looks silly or not. This is how we grown ups should act too. If we laugh to each other more often, the world would be much happier. Laughing is healthy!
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Marcus Baker Reply:
November 30th, 2011 at 1:26 am
Hi Eleonora,
You know the value of being silly well from watching your son. They have so much to teach us since they some into the world far more connected to the perfection that they are.
I agree with you laughing is very very healthy!
~Marcus
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Seems like no pants to work day. I heard about this. Didn’t know about this video and how all started. The second idea with the building really cracked me up. Thanks, this was just what I needed!
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Marcus Baker Reply:
November 30th, 2011 at 1:24 am
Hi Cristian,
Don’t you just love it when you come across exactly what you need. Pleased this post did that for you.
~Marcus
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Childhood was the best time in my life. I used to play without any tension of anything. It was a very touching post and it reminded me my childhood. I enjoyed the video very much. Thank you very much Marcus.
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Marcus Baker Reply:
November 30th, 2011 at 1:07 am
Hi Mohsin,
My grandmother always told me I would think back to the carefree nature of my childhood when I was an adult and what I would remember is how free I was when I played as a child. She was so right.
Thanks for your comment Mohsin.
~Marcus
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Marcus, aloha. In checking your two posts prior to this, I see that you responded to all the comments except mine so I am wondering if they have disappeared from your side of the blog. They show on the front on the blog as you look at comments. What’s odd is that in both instances you responded to the people after me.
Since I know that happened before, I just wanted to make sure you knew I commented because I thoroughly enjoyed, as usual, both of those posts.
Hope you are enjoying a wonderful weekend. Aloha. Janet
Janet Callaway recently posted..12 Essentials for your Happiness Kit
[Reply]
Marcus Baker Reply:
November 28th, 2011 at 12:43 am
Janet aloha,
Thank you for alerting me to this. I do usually only respond to comments from the admin area and as I am sure you know I always respond to your comments ASAP since they are always so valuable.
Once before your comments moved totally out of sequence in the back end, landing up in amongst comments that had been answered s few weeks earlier. How absolutely bizarre… Janet I do apologise and I will make it my right now to find all your comments and make sure they have been replied to.
Thank you again for letting me know and I do apologise for the “madness” that is my admin area at times!
~Marcus
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what a great article.
Its hard for a legal aid like me to find time to be serious in my 80 hour workweek, but after seeing that TED talk you linked to, I just might have to make an exception.
Now to go back to this paperwork I put off for an hour without realizing. Thanks for the break.
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Marcus Baker Reply:
November 30th, 2011 at 12:46 am
Hi Pete,
It is easy to take things too seriously and it’s all up to us not to do so. I am pleased the video gave you a break!
~Marcus
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Haha – I love this sort of thing, it cracks me up and although I always had a “good corporate management” job, if there was ever any excuse to have a good giggle over something silly then you can guarantee that it would be me laughing first, but in the carriage I think I would have reacted exactly the same!
Thanks for giving me an evening giggle!
Nicky
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Marcus Baker Reply:
November 30th, 2011 at 12:44 am
Hi Nicky,
It is so funny how we as human beings behave and don’t behave in certain circumstances. It’s always good to laugh at ourselves for just being who we are. If we could do it differently I am sure we would!
Pleased it made you giggle… that was really all I wanted to achieve!
~Marcus
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Hi Marcus,
That Video you have posted is AMAZINGLY FUNNY!!! I love it. Sometimes this is what we need after a long stressful work. Being serious is ok but being funny is great
Well me my problem is I’m not that serious. After watching the video especially when they wear blue polo and khaki pants I can’t stop my self from laughing lol!
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Marcus Baker Reply:
November 30th, 2011 at 12:42 am
Hi Onie,
Pleased you had a good laugh – that was my intention!
~Marcus
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Hi Marcus,l
Oh what a wonderful video! It did make me laugh (out loud.) How funny!
You know, life is serious enough and we shouldn’t make it even more serious. I’m always up for a good laugh.
Thank you so much for sharing this and for the laugh!
Hope you’re feeling better!
Ilka
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[Reply]
Marcus Baker Reply:
November 30th, 2011 at 12:32 am
Hi Ilka,
Awesome! My only purpose was to have people laugh a bit! Always a winner in my books. Thanks for the wished Ilka. Still treading a little slowly but all good.
~Marcus
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Hi Marcus. Oh… I just love daft! Having a good laugh is so good for the soul. Life is too short not to be goofy once in a while.
Loved the video Marcus. It’s lovely to see you too, btw. It’s been a couple of weeks or so hasn’t it?
See you soon Marcus, I’m just in the midst of getting a few things completed so I’ve had to bow out a little to get in the game!
Jayne
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Marcus Baker Reply:
November 30th, 2011 at 12:30 am
Hi Jayne,
Lovely to have you stop by again Jayne. I think we have both been a little away and that’s not a bad thing.
Just read your post explaining what’s coming up in your world Jayne and it all sounds mighty exciting.
~Marcus
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This is one of the most hilarious video I have watched in the recent times. Not many people realize the value of being silly. Great post, Marcus!
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Marcus Baker Reply:
December 6th, 2011 at 4:38 am
Hi Cheolsu,
Pleased you enjoyed the video and agree with me that being silly is important.
~Marcus
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I have a story for that
My friend, Major Fun, is sometimes known as Doctor Fun, sometimes as Professor Fun, sometimes as Bernie De Koven. He is helping people find delight in win-win games. …For years we have been having dialogue about how to let Silly out of the cage. Both “Serious” and “Silly” coexist within us. Major FUN thinks Serious has Silly imprisoned in most of us.
These two forces operate in our consciousness. Silly can’t take action because the force of Serious overrules Silly. Serious likes to think of itself as the Great Manager
ps thanks for one more great post, Marcus!
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Marcus Baker Reply:
December 11th, 2011 at 4:48 am
Hi Mary,
I love your analogous description here and oh so true too…. Serious is one heck of a gaol keeper in most of us.
Si I wonder what the solution is… maybe we just have to become better managers of the staff?
Thank you for your comment!
~Marcus
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Hi Marcus,
This is 1 of life’s most important lessons.
Lighten up and life becomes much, much easier. Because all the negative energy, tension and stress dissolves instantly when you decide to be silly, to be light.
I have been known to do a few silly dances throughout the day, or anything to keep me light. I have a natural tendency to focus in and attach to daily tasks. Being silly helps me dissolve these attachments and focus on the moment with a light, calm, confident mood.
Thanks for sharing your insight Marcus. Merry Christmas!
RB
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I love this post, Marcus! =) It has me smiling from ear to ear, and not just because of Charlie Todd’s video! I can so imagine actually living out your example of doing 10 handstands (and maybe falling over and laughing at myself) instead of letting life get to me. Peru has allowed me to be much sillier than I felt I was allowed to by society, friends, and family in Vancouver.
In fact, now that I’m here for Christmas, all I seem to be thinking and talking about is how I can be more responsible. In Peru, that goes flying out the window for the most part. =P
Loved reflecting on this, Marcus! =)
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Marcus, I’m serious about staying as silly as possible. Some folks think humor is a distraction from work. For me, it is the point of work. Work should be fun and so should reading blogs!
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Marcus Baker Reply:
January 25th, 2012 at 11:19 pm
Hi Astro,
Great points. I agree completely. If something isn’t fun then we really shouldn’t be doing it, no matter what it is.
~Marcus
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I LOVE this post, Marcus! Thank you!
Being playful and silly is a wonderful way to release stress, keep life in perspective, and have fun.
As I wrote in a recent blog entry, as a child I was overly serious and this attitude caused me much pain and worry. Fortunately for me, I learned to let that seriousness go and enjoy life!
Thank you so much for sharing that awesome video and the wonderful reminder to be playful today!
Chrysta
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Hi Markus,
As we get older, the ego grows In size and continues to block the inner child who is always in us. We just need to keep making the ego smaller and keep pushing it out the way and allow the child to emerge.
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Marcus Baker Reply:
January 25th, 2012 at 6:20 am
Hi Hiten,
Love that you have touched on the subject of the inner child. The other day I heard this referred to as the orphan that needs to be reunited with the parent.
~Marcus
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