Psychology

The Power of Fun: How to Feel Alive Again

The Power of Fun: How to Feel Alive Again

  • Downloads：1252
  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2021-12-21 10:50:56
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Catherine Price
  • ISBN：0593241401
  • Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary

If you're not having fun， you're not fully living。 The author of How to Break Up with Your Phone makes the case that， far from being frivolous， fun is actually critical to our well-being--and shows us how to have more of it。

"This delightful book might just be what we need to start flourishing。"--#1 New York Times bestselling author Adam Grant

Journalist and screen/life balance expert Catherine Price argues persuasively that our always-on， tech-addicted lifestyles have led us to obsess over intangible concepts such as happiness while obscuring the fact that real happiness lies in the everyday experience of fun。 We often think of fun as indulgent， even immature and selfish。 We claim to not have time for it， even as we find hours a day for what Price calls Fake Fun--bingeing on television， doomscrolling the news， or posting photos to social media， all in hopes of filling some of the emptiness we feel inside。。

In this follow-up to her hit book， How to Break Up with Your Phone， Price makes the case that True Fun--which she defines as the magical confluence of playfulness， connection， and flow--will give us the fulfillment we so desperately seek。 If you use True Fun as your compass， you will be happier and healthier。 You will be more productive， less resentful， and less stressed。 You will have more energy。 You will find community and a sense of purpose。 You will stop languishing and start flourishing。 And best of all？ You'll enjoy the process。

Weaving together scientific research with personal experience， Price reveals the surprising mental， physical， and cognitive benefits of fun， and offers a practical， personalized plan for how we can achieve better screen/life balance and attract more True Fun into our daily lives--without feeling overwhelmed。

Groundbreaking， eye-opening， and packed with useful advice， The Power of Fun won't just change the way you think about fun。 It will bring you back to life。

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Reviews

Benjamin Herbstman ，

Catherine Price’s new book is nothing short of a delight。 Price， a serious journalist who doesn’t take herself too seriously， has written a book that couldn’t be more timely given the multitude of un-fun aspects of life in 2021 from climate change to political unrest to Covid。 Price nicely makes the argument that by focusing on fun， which she defines as a combination of playfulness， connection， and flow， we will be able to feel more joy and rejuvenation as well as have the strength and resilienc Catherine Price’s new book is nothing short of a delight。 Price， a serious journalist who doesn’t take herself too seriously， has written a book that couldn’t be more timely given the multitude of un-fun aspects of life in 2021 from climate change to political unrest to Covid。 Price nicely makes the argument that by focusing on fun， which she defines as a combination of playfulness， connection， and flow， we will be able to feel more joy and rejuvenation as well as have the strength and resiliency to face the un-fun aspects of our times。 Price’s last book laid out the case for why – and how – to break up with your phone （or computer or whatever else has been designed to steal your time （i。e。， your life））。 This book will help you figure out what to do with the time that you have rediscovered while gently provide encouragement to step outside of your comfort zone and into a life that doesn’t make you feel dead inside。 A must read。 。。。more

Adam Benforado ，

As the pandemic shroud descended， I gave up on fun。 With two working parents， two little kids， and no childcare， I decided that fun no longer fit my lifestyle。 It was one of the personal “luxuries” that I had to do without for a while。 As I always had， I continued to pursue fun for my children—but I told myself that a prudent， disciplined adult in my position would focus on other things until the landscape changed to something less foreboding。 Catherine Price’s excellent， eye-opening new book ha As the pandemic shroud descended， I gave up on fun。 With two working parents， two little kids， and no childcare， I decided that fun no longer fit my lifestyle。 It was one of the personal “luxuries” that I had to do without for a while。 As I always had， I continued to pursue fun for my children—but I told myself that a prudent， disciplined adult in my position would focus on other things until the landscape changed to something less foreboding。 Catherine Price’s excellent， eye-opening new book has made me realize my mistake。 Fun is not “just for kids。” Fun is not optional。 Fun is not something that detracts from more serious pursuits。 Fun is essential and when you turn your back on it， you imperil all of the oh-so-serious facets of your life: your health， your work productivity， and your relationships。 Marshaling the latest social science evidence， Catherine makes a powerful case for the incredible benefits that arise in moments of fun。 Devouring an advance copy of the manuscript in a single reading， I found myself nodding along as she explained the nuances of playfulness， connection， and flow。 It all made sense， but I hadn’t had the sense to see it。 Catherine is a keen observer， but she’s also a funny writer and I wonder if it was the laughing out loud that produced the lasting impact。 Whatever the cause， when I finished， I felt refreshed: I’d made a mistake， but I now knew what I needed to do。With the new year， I’m committing to finding True Fun。 If you’ve been gritting your teeth， buckling down the hatches， keeping calm and carrying on， through the last two years， I encourage you—indeed， I implore you—to pick up this book。 2022 can be a different year！ 。。。more

Lydia Wallace ，

I wish I would have read this book earlier in my life as I am 64 years old now。 After reading this book I felt so uplifted and realized it is never to late to enjoy life and have fun。 I wake up each morning now feeling happier and looking for something fun to do each day。 It might be something small or large but it brings me joy。 Thanks Catherine Price。 Highly recommend。

Mary ，

I just learned that I won a copy of this book in a Goodreads Giveaway when a copy showed up on my porch！ （I missed the email somehow。）

Elizabeth ，

This was an interesting read。 While I’m not diving head first into adopting her plan for adding more fun to my life， she has made me think about the role of fun in my life and how to make it more prevalent。

Crystal ，

The Power of Fun was such an inspirational read for me。 I have learned so much from this novel and it will stick with me as it has me reevaluating my life， who I spend time with and how I spend my time。 I highly recommend this novel and I am now off to request other books from this author。

Ann ，

I was really looking forward to "The Power of Fun"。 Who doesn't need more fun in their life？I only got about halfway through the book。She had me at the beginning。 All the personal anecdotes helped make her points very clear。The only problem was that she made it into a science （which I don't agree that fun is）。It seems to me that this subject would make a great essay （for the New York Times？）The bottom line is: she defines fun as playfulness， connection and flow。 When you have one of these， you a I was really looking forward to "The Power of Fun"。 Who doesn't need more fun in their life？I only got about halfway through the book。She had me at the beginning。 All the personal anecdotes helped make her points very clear。The only problem was that she made it into a science （which I don't agree that fun is）。It seems to me that this subject would make a great essay （for the New York Times？）The bottom line is: she defines fun as playfulness， connection and flow。 When you have one of these， you are heading in the right direction。 When you have all three， you are having Real Fun （as opposed to Fake Fun， which she also defines）。So， you need to think about situations where you had one or two or all three of the components of Real Fun。 And repeat。I think I've summed the book up nicely。 。。。more

Lisa ，

I felt like this book didn't need to be nearly as long as it was。 There wasn't a ton new in the messaging and I didn't learn much， but it's certainly an important message and had a lot of good reminders in it。 I felt like this book didn't need to be nearly as long as it was。 There wasn't a ton new in the messaging and I didn't learn much， but it's certainly an important message and had a lot of good reminders in it。 。。。more

Todd Kashdan ，

Of all the documentaries， podcasts， and books I've digested over the years none have been as persuasive as The Power of Fun to wean me from my smartphone screen （and convince others to do the same）。 But don't be mislead。 This is not an authoritarian creed on the evils of smartphones。 What this book addresses is the next seemingly obvious question - if you detox from screens， what's the plan for entertaining yourself？ You probably don't have a great answer and neither did I。 This is one reason ki Of all the documentaries， podcasts， and books I've digested over the years none have been as persuasive as The Power of Fun to wean me from my smartphone screen （and convince others to do the same）。 But don't be mislead。 This is not an authoritarian creed on the evils of smartphones。 What this book addresses is the next seemingly obvious question - if you detox from screens， what's the plan for entertaining yourself？ You probably don't have a great answer and neither did I。 This is one reason kids refuse to leave their screens。 This is at the core of why adults are often worse than kids with their screen addictions。 People just don't know what to do with their free time。 Consider this quote from the late Dr。 Mihalyi Csiksentmihalyi， author of Flow: In their free time people feel that there is generally not much to do and their skills are not being used， and therefore they tend to feel more sad， weak， dull， and dissatisfied。In general， adults have a hard time having fun。 Being silly。 Being rebellious。 Laughing uproariously without a hint of self-consciousness。 Entering into a playful mindset and diving headfirst into activities。 This book is going to change people's lives。 It is a manifesto on how to live with more playfulness and exuberance。 I really hope this gets into the hands of people I bump into at future bars and parties。 I don't just want to inject more fun into my life， I want to be surrounded and infected by other people enjoying themselves。I do want to add a bonus reason to read this book - you will adore the author。 She is $#@！ hilarious。 The way she experiments on herself。 The way she details the intimate connections and arguments with her partner。 She is witty。 She is intelligent。 And she has a masterful way of relying on research but keeping it in the background。 Her playful writing style makes this book infinitely readable and relatable。 You are going to want to contact her with hopes of being her friend。 I have read hundreds of books。 The only other author who I wanted to befriend as quickly as Catherine Price is Mary Roach。 Kind， hilarious， witty， intellectuals with a desire to improve other people's lives。Honestly， this is one of my favorite reads and will certainly be on my end of year recommendation list。 。。。more

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=The Power of Fun: How to Feel Alive Again

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=The Power of Fun: How to Feel Alive Again&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,The Power of Fun: How to Feel Alive Again&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0