When is the last time you experienced fun? When you did something that filled you with joy, amusement and energy?

Science journalist CATHERINE PRICE believes many of us are starved for fun. We assume that binge-watching TV or scrolling through social media fulfills that need. But Price says those are actually “fake fun” activities. “True fun,” she says, is playfulness, connection and flow, a magical combination that can leave one feeling elated, energized and exuberant for hours — even days.

In her book, The Power of Fun: How to Feel Alive Again, Price discusses the importance of having fun, why it’s so underrated and how we can incorporate it so we live happier, healthier and more connected lives. [Originally broadcast December 15th, 2021]

Guest

Catherine Price, science journalist and author of The Power of Fun: How to Feel Alive Again and How to Break Up with Your Phone. She’s the founder of Screen Life Balance.com

Recommended reading

Huffington Post, Here’s Why You Need to Do a Fun Audit (Yes, Really) Right Now – “A fun audit is the process of figuring out how much fun you are (or are not) currently having, and identifying your personal ‘fun magnets’ and ‘fun factors’ so that you can make a plan to incorporate more opportunities for fun into your life.”

Parade, Author Catherine Price Says We Need to Stop Thinking Time Is Money and Learn to Have More Fun–Our Health Depends on It – “One thing I found particularly interesting in my own research was that when people described past experiences of true fun, the vast majority involved other people, even for self-described introverts. ”

New York Times, cellphone-addiction-time.html">How to Break Up With Your Phone – “I still wanted to use my phone when it was helpful or fun. But I wanted a new relationship with it — one with better boundaries, and over which I had more control.”