conversations
What’s in a conversation? It’s the beginning of new ideas. A sharing of personal stories.
A start of meaningful relationships. This Pulse section called Conversations
highlights opinions, ideas, visions and personal anecdotes of CEOs and leaders from across industries.
Join the conversation. Send your questions and suggestions on leaders you’d like Pulse to profile.
B Y M A E M A Ñ AC A P - J O H N S O N
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hink of innovation and creativity as constant playmates. Together, they
can connect concepts like imaginary Lego blocks to invent new things
or even scribble on colored paper to draw thought-provoking ideas.
The process that opens up imagination, according to the National
Institute for Play founder Stuart Brown, M.D., is called play.
“We are designed to find fulfillment and creative growth through play,”
says Dr. Brown in his book titled Play: How It Shapes the Brain, Opens the
Imagination and Invigorates the Soul. In this Conversations, he takes us to the
fun, creative and serious business of play.
DR. STUART BROWN
PULSE: Given some
people’s definition of play as
“unproductive” and
“goofing off,” the idea of
play as a serious topic may
not appeal to everyone. Why
is there a need to take play seriously?
Dr. Stuart: Play is anything but trivial. It is central to healthy
child development and integral to well-being throughout life.
Studies that objectify play deprivation reveal the dire consequences in emotional regulation, the capacity to maintain
optimism and the enhancement of the immune system regulation. Prioritizing one’s own personal playtime immensely
yields benefits.
P: Based on your research, what does play do to the
brain?
DS: Not only my research, but a flood of credible research
from many, points to the scientific compass that play
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impulses flow from the brainstem where survival drives are
housed, and that experiencing “states” of play turns on many
limbic and other subcortical [regions of the] brain, as well as
ignite genes in the prefrontal cortex that help develop new
connections, and much more.
P: In your book, you said “the opposite of play is not
work, but depression.” Can you explore more on this
and on the dangers of play deprivation?
DS: From the 6,000 or so detailed personal play reviews that
I have conducted, whenever play is seriously missed, the
mood changes and lack of personal flexibility in the face of
life’s inevitable challenges that accompany such deprivation
is also associated with mild to moderate depression. This
differs from the biologically driven depression that requires
more professional or pharmacologic interventions.
P: Because play is considered a company’s most precious commodity, what piece of advice can you give for