One thing you should know about me is that I love to have fun. Whether I am at the job or hanging with my family or just spending time with friends I like to insert fun into whatever I am doing. Growing up I always had a strong sense of adventure. Backpacking, hiking, traveling, exploring, climbing on rocks, mountain biking, downhill skiing, cliff jumping, bungee jumping, sky diving, snorkeling, white water rafting are all activities that make me feel alive. I strongly believe that life is an adventure that we should live it to the fullest. What if I told you could go on some of these adventures and get paid to do it? Would you be interested?
The simple fact is that your job is going to be as fun as you are or as boring as you are.
I have found that many people would love to have more fun or even adventure at their job, so why don’t we? The simple fact is that your job is going to be as fun as you are or as boring as you are. I understand some jobs make fun and adventure easier than others, but really the choice is yours. I would like to give you 4 simple steps that have made a difference in my life when it comes to having fun either at work or in my after work activities.
1. DON’T MAKE EXCUSES
This is the single biggest obstacle to get over when it comes to having fun or introducing adventure into your life. Most people would love a little more adventure, but they don’t have the time or the money or the experience or the ability or the flexibility in their job or any one of a million excuses that we come up with. I have determined that I will not live my life with regret and more often than not regret rides in on the wings of the excuses we make.
2. TAKE INITIATIVE
Have you ever waited until the last minute to do something and found out that you missed out on a potentially great opportunity? I know I have done this more times than I care to admit and it is not fun. When it comes to having fun or adventures you have to take initiative and make things happen. If you wait for someone else to create the opportunity for you than most likely you will be waiting for a long time. If you have an idea or something you want to do than simply go for it. If nobody from your work is creating an opportunity to have fun than why don’t you create that opportunity?
3. CREATE A PLAN
After you eliminate excuses and take the initiative to make something happen it would be a really good idea to come up with a simple plan. This does not need to be a 50 step detailed outline, but most great things don’t happen by accident. Jotting down a few notes to stay organized and accountable will serve you well. There are plenty of ways to create a plan, but to keep it simple just use the 5 W’s and an H. (Who, what, when, where, why, how) Once you have your plan in place share it with the appropriate people and make it happen.
4. DO IT ALL AGAIN
Once you have followed this process don’t stop there. Learn how to eliminate excuses so that nothing stops you from having fun. Realize most things that are fun don’t just come out of nowhere. Take the initiative and create epic moments for you and the people in your life. Sometimes the smallest moments create the biggest memories. For those more in depth adventures make a simple plan. The old cliché says that if you fail to plan than you plan to fail. Repeat this process often and you’ll be able to look back over your shoulder and realize that your life is far from boring.
Some of Dave’s Adventures…
Mt.Shasta Skiing Trip: I love skiing so how can I get paid to do what I love. Why not plan a trip for our clients on a day when skiing is free? Our clients got free rentals, lift tickets and lessons and we got 2 days of free skiing just for bringing them up. Pretty good deal.
Many of our clients have lived 1 hour away
from Burney Falls, but have never been there. Why not take them out there, get a guided tour and learn all about the land scape of that area? Done!
Whiskey Town Fun in the Sun and Lake Safety Day: I wanted to take some of our clients out to the Lake for a picnic because who wouldn’t want to get paid to go to the lake. Create an event. Have a park ranger come give a safety talk and answer questions. Help clients receive lifetime park passes. Cook some healthy food. Play some games for exercise and you have a perfect day at the lake. Don’t mind if I do.
20 Year Anniversary Cruise: Enter a contest and win so that your entire cruise cost is covered. Go on a 7 day cruise from San Francisco to Mexico and have a blast with clients and coworkers. Oh and did I mention you get paid a 40 hour work week. Get paid to play on a cruise? Sure.
Photo Credit:Markus Spiske, Dave Waite
Really liked this. Before coming to Compass I was working in a job I did not like. I talked to some of the other employees for Compass but never believed in myself. I made every excuse why not to apply for the job. Until one day I decided that I was going to do it and it’s been the best decision of my life .