When Was the Last Time You Played?
- Utkarsh Narang
- Sep 23, 2025
- 2 min read
August 25, 2025
Welcome to another beautiful week. When an idea sparks that I think is worth sharing, it becomes this weekly newsletter. If something hits home, write back. I love conversations. This is Weekly Spark #15.
Do you remember how it felt as a kid to run outside, make up games, and lose track of time?
No agenda. No outcome. Just play.
Somewhere along the way, we traded that for meetings, metrics, and to-do lists. We forgot the value of unstructured play.
I will be honest, I am no different. But in my interactions with some extraordinary humans and two boys that my wife and I are raising, this is shifting.
And here’s the truth, Play isn’t just for children. It’s fuel for creativity, connection, and growth.
🎲 The Value of Play in Life
Play gives us permission to step outside the boxes we live in. It lowers stress, sparks imagination, and helps us see the world differently.
When you laugh, when you experiment, when you let go of winning, you find parts of yourself you’d buried under responsibility.
The best solutions in life emerge while you are away from the problem statement and in a state of joy due to play. Last week, I was coaching someone and what emerged for them was that its not that the work they do does not bring them joy but it is what they don’t do with the free time that they have that steals their joy.
Deep right?
🏀 Play in Teams
Teams that play together don’t just bond—they innovate. Play breaks down hierarchy.
It opens the door for ideas that wouldn’t surface in a formal meeting. It builds trust in a way no off-site agenda ever can.
A team that plays is a team that dares.
In my workshops, I often make teams play with Lego sets to spark that joy, creativity and create the openness of thoughts to receive ideas on how they can be high performing.
🌍 Adventure in Organisations
Orgnisations that embrace adventure don’t play it safe. They test. They try. They experiment.
Every bold innovation we admire started as someone saying: “Let’s see what happens if…”
Without a spirit of play and adventure, businesses stagnate.
With it, they thrive.
💬 Final Spark
So here’s the nudge for this week: When was the last time you played, not for productivity, not for profit, but just for joy?
Because the value of play isn’t about escaping work.
It’s about becoming the kind of human, and leader, who can imagine, adapt, and create.
With lightness and laughter, Utkarsh
(Coach | Believer in Play | Explorer of Human Potential)
Comments