When I was a girl, my idea of summer fun wasn’t swimming or picnics or baseball or going to the cottage. What made my heart sing was hours and hours of reading (maybe accompanied by a sugar donut or two), preferably inside.

When I did my summer journaling, I realized I was longing for that again. Instead of lying on the living room rug, I’ll be on my deck with a cup of iced tea and a pencil to underline and to scribble in notes. Yum! My husband will encourage me to do some light reading, to enjoy some fiction. But inevitably, I’ll have piles of non-fiction and memoirs, most related to the arts in some way. That’s my happy place. That’s what’s fun for me.

Over the years, I’ve coached clients who felt a pull to have more fun with their work. Sometimes that’s been about letting go of restriction and perfection but often it’s about simply letting yourself love what you love.

Fun for you might be…

hours and hours at your sewing machine
late nights laughing with your friends
getting messy with your gelli plates
seeing if you can swim that lap faster
going to the dog park (dog or no)
collecting vintage jewellery
learning to throw a pot
playing cards
playing with words
playing an instrument
playing an MMORPG
researching family history
gathering floral specimens
staying in bed all day with Netflix
a romantic night with your honey
birdwatching
learning a language
dancing in your kitchen
exploring a new neighbourhood
planning your next trip
a day at the spa
a night on the town
building a database of your reading
organizing your photos
listening to music

You name it!

Your fun might be boisterous but it might also be quiet. It might be playful but it might also be studious. It might be messy but it might also be orderly. It might be relaxed but it might also be challenging.

Fun is giving yourself full permission to enjoy what you enjoy simply because you enjoy it.

I hope that this week you’ll think about what is fun for you – and then you’ll let yourself enjoy it.

Let the magic of summer begin!