The Fun Habit: Pursuing Joy and Wonder (w/ Mike Rucker)

In the “always on” culture of today, fun can often be viewed as a sign of not being serious enough, an indulgence that takes away from our productive lives. Or worse yet, even if we value fun, it can elude us as we either just forget to have fun, or we just feel that we can’t escape the tide of day to day life. 

Today we’re joined by Organizational Psychologist and Fun expert, Dr. Mike Rucker, to uncover:

- What roles do fun and joy play in living a healthy, purposeful, and sustainable life?
- What are the forces that have led to productivity bias, being “always on”, and leading fun-starved lives?
- What can we do to inject more fun into our life, both for pleasure and, paradoxically, to increase our productivity?
- And finally, what is the difference between fun and happiness, and how do we sort out “healthy” fun from its escapist, unhealthy counterpart?

Mike shares that it all starts by remembering that having fun matters, and to examine how we’ve habituated our time, attention, and energy towards activities that may or may not be bringing us joy. Once we understand that, there are a myriad of ways in which we can experiment with fun and inject it into our lives, from simple pleasures to big joyful events, all contributing to a more generative, sustainable, and vibrant life. 

About Michael Rucker:
Dr. Mike Rucker is an organizational psychologist, behavioral scientist, former entrepreneur, charter member of the International Positive Psychology Association, and an accredited member of the American College of Sports Medicine.

He has been academically published in publications like the International Journal of Workplace Health Management. His ideas about fun and health have been featured in The Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Fast Company, Psychology Today, Forbes, Vox, Thrive Global, Mindful, mindbodygreen, and more.

He currently serves as a senior leader at Active Wellness and is the author of the best-selling book The Fun Habit, which is out now.

Other references:
Happier Hour
Hedonic Flexibility Principle

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