“This is the real secret of life -- to be completely engaged with what you are doing in the here and now. And instead of calling it work, realize it is play.”

― Alan W. Watts, 1915-1973, British philosopher, writer and speaker.

Today we are going to talk about how to create a game. Make whatever you are doing exciting and fun. Perhaps you are unhappy with your work and are looking for a new job or career path. Or you are in business development looking to get more clients. Or you have a team to lead and are getting stuck or frustrated with how you are leading. There are some aspects of your work that are not fun. In fact, you could say that’s why it’s called work.

Work is not always supposed to be fun. But you can turn work into a game by using a couple of key strategies from well-conceived games. Look at any sports, or your favorite sport. It has a beginning, a middle and an end. There are rules and there’s a way of keeping score and keeping track of how you are doing along the way.

Here are some pointers borrowing from well-conceived games:

1. Frame up your goals. What would you like to achieve and by when? Set goals that are SMART – Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant and Time-bound. We don’t always apply them when we could. Look at an area where you want to achieve something and set a time frame around a specific goal you want to achieve.

2. Have a team. Even if you are doing something solitary like getting a new job. Don’t go it alone. Partner up with somebody. Let them know what is your game, what you want to achieve. Hold each other accountable.. And see if they want to create a game for themselves, too. Hold each other accountable. Tell each other how many actions you are each going to take and by when. Constructive accountability is a great part of winning a game.

3. Track your results. Keep a score card visible and handy. Anytime you have a base hit, you keep score and enjoy the little victories and progress along the way. It might also remind you that whatever you have been working on, that had not been fun before, is in fact a game you are playing to win.

4. Celebrate and review your results at the end of the game. During every game, you will be winning and learning even if you don’t always hit the results you had hoped to. Certainly, if you do hit your results, you want to celebrate your win.

So what about you? What are you pursing that you want to turn into a game?