Play is not only beneficial for children. It can also help adults to relax and boost their productivity. Play can be the perfect antidote to the stress of everyday life, fuelling imagination and boosting emotional well-being and creativity.
Beneficial play will not make use of electronic gadgets. Instead, it could entail spending time with friends, joking with co-workers, playing frisbee in the park, dressing up for Halloween, building a snowman, getting on the kids’ wooden climbing frames, or playing with the dog.
The benefits
Play is vital for children’s development, but its benefits do not end when we get older. For adults, it can relieve stress, improve relationships, boost brain function, make work more pleasurable and productive, supercharge learning and help people to maintain a youthful feel. More information about the benefits of adult play can be found at https://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2012/11/15/the-importance-of-play-for-adults/.
Relationships and play
Playing with friends, relatives and co-workers can cement relationships and build connections that are durable and positive. Play can help to improve social skills and co-operation and can be extremely effective at healing emotional wounds.
Workplace play
An increasing number of companies are recognising that having fun at work can boost productivity. Some employers even offer yoga or art classes or actively encourage other forms of play.
These companies believe that playing at work, whether it is a game of table football during a lunchtime break or a trip to the beach, can increase job satisfaction and workplace morale, leading to better attendance and retention rates.
There are many ways for employers to encourage play at work, ranging from installing play equipment from companies such as http://www.niclimbingframes.com/climbing-frames in an outside space to recommending that workers keep a sketch pad or camera close at hand to take creative breaks when possible.
Productivity and play
Workplace success doesn’t necessarily depend on how much work is done. Instead, it is the quality of the work that can be most important. High-quality work can be directly linked with employee well-being.
Playtime can give the brain time to refresh, making employees much more productive when they return to work. When someone hits a wall or a problem that must be overcome, it can be much more beneficial for them to take a little time out to have fun instead of struggling on with very little effect.