Love Learn Lead June 29, 2017

June is already on its way out, but thankfully, we still have a lot of summer left! This week, we are focusing on the importance of having fun and making it a part of our life. On Monday, I shared that having fun can be hard for some of us (myself, included). I also shared some ways that help me lighten up where I need to. Today, we continue talking about fun, and I am thankful you are joining us. I hope wherever you are reading this today, you are finding pockets in your life where you are able to feel free and have fun! Happy Thursday!

Love

One of my favorite podcasts, is Annie F. Down’s “That Sounds Fun.” Every episode she interviews someone interesting, and at the end, she asks them “What sounds fun to you today?” Some talk about being with family, going to a sports game, eating fun food, etc. And I love that she asks this because how often do we get asked to think about doing something fun? Sometimes, we are so busy in life that we almost feel guilty to even think about having fun. Yet as I talked about on Monday, there are a lot of benefits for making fun a regular part of our lives.

Today, I would say going on a long beautiful hike with some of my favorite people, and then eating an awesome seafood dinner, sounds fun to me.

What sounds fun to you?

Learn

“We don’t stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing.”

—George Bernard Shaw

Lead

Leadership #8: Have Fun With Your Team

After one of the most challenging seasons in my leadership, we hired a new member to our team. He was extrovert to our introvert, and funny to our serious. He brought a needed levity to a ministry that felt as if it was at ground zero. And soon, he was pulling us out of our offices for lunch, and giving us a much needed break in the middle of our days. Whether he realized it or not, he played an intricate role in rebounding our ministry that season—all by teaching us that fun is an important part of leadership.

Healthy fun is the foundation of trust building within a team. It is what brings down walls between coworkers, and creates relationships that go beyond the task at hand. Having fun together, enables a team to pull together when things are hard.

Sometimes the things that seem the least productive, bring about the greatest returns in your leadership. Making time to eat together and play together (go mini-golfing or to a baseball game), can go a long way in strengthening your team.