Photo by Jacqueline Munguía  on Unsplash What happens when we stop taking aging literally, and reframe it playfully? Science poses a new theoretical framework: play may be the route to improved cognitive health in aging. What if one of the most powerful ways to stay cognitively alive (not just sharp, but awake ), is something we are trained to outgrow? Through social play, unscripted interaction, mutual surprise and the willingness to accept the uncontrollable, we may unlock

Photo by Bhautik Patel  on Unsplash We idealise the rational self; goal motivated, logical, realistic, but this is only one dimension of thinking. Underneath every choice we make is a far more human system: the social reward mechanism. Think of it as the brain’s way of saying ‘this matters’, it’s the neurological system behind pleasure and motivation that’s activated when we connect, play and belong. These chemically reinforced experiences predate modern society by millions o

Photo by Edwin Hooper  on Unsplash During the pandemic, we lost much more than routines; we lost mental space and psychological resources. The implicit belief that stress was something of quiet endurance was stripped away. Discussions focused on vaccines and lockdowns and infection rates to cope with the mental strain of COVID-19’s impact on our experiences. But how did people manage their inner experience? Research suggests that playfulness had an active role in a person’s a

Photo by Antonio Gabola  on Unsplash What if a major problem at work is not the lack of focus, but instead, the lack of play? Wellbeing, as instructed by organisations, can be managed by reducing stress or increasing resilience, or squeezing mindfulness in between meetings. While these are useful techniques, what if there’s one major practice missing? Play does not have to be a break from work. What happens when it’s integrated into the way  we work? A different type of inte