{"id":2260,"date":"2013-07-30T06:39:39","date_gmt":"2013-07-30T13:39:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/redshoezone.ca\/?p=2260"},"modified":"2016-04-16T13:52:28","modified_gmt":"2016-04-16T20:52:28","slug":"just-say-yes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ohmywordjournal.com\/redshoezone\/just-say-yes\/","title":{"rendered":"Just say YES!"},"content":{"rendered":"

AAAhhhh Mid life<\/em>\u2026..kids launched\u2026nest empty (well\u2026 maybe not totally<\/em> empty\u2026.20 something\u2019s could be back\/never left and aging parents may have moved in)\u2026nonetheless it is Life Part II. Twenty five to forty years (knock on wood) to take life ON!<\/p>\n

Time to say a big YES to Life!<\/strong><\/p>\n

There\u2019s a seriously fun IMPROV theater game called \u201cYES and\u201d, it illustrates the power of YES!<\/strong><\/p>\n

Performer\/player #1 starts by making a statement (the more ridiculous and nonsensical the better so there’s obviously no way to be ‘correct’). \u00a0Performer\/player #2 responds by saying \u201cYes, and \u2026.\u201d building on whatever they were given and flipping it back to the first person who adds another layer and sends it back and so on and so on. It might go something like this:<\/p>\n

\u201cHey\u2026I saw a purple rhinoceros on the subway this morning reading the sports section.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201dYes, and I saw an orange one reading the food section at 2nd\u00a0and Maple!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, and did you hear what I heard? \u00a0Apparently rhinos are the single biggest group seeking asylum…we\u2019re going to be seeing more and more of them.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, and of course anyone can understand why\u2026.mucky swamps, barren landscapes, hot, dry and dusty\u2026.who wouldn\u2019t want to get outta Dodge?<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, and what about the drain on our already overburdened system? The cost of supporting one of these interlopers \u00a0has to be astronomical!\u201d<\/p>\n

Yes, and I understand an initiative \u00a0to provide funding for housing, food, job training is in the works\u2026heard about it?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2026\u2026.and on (and on) until a player is stumped.<\/p>\n

Players are continually pressed to stay open, accept whatever they are given, think fast on their feet, trust their innate creativity and respond spontaneously. By saying \u201cYES, and\u2026.\u201d the game can continue indefinitely and becomes increasingly hilarious as players with zero time to edit \u00a0thoughts have to trust the first thing that pops into their head.<\/p>\n

Give this some thought – Interestingly, in life our spontaneous, non-edited thoughts often contain our brightest moments of brilliance.<\/em><\/p>\n

I love “YES, and…\u201d! I would often play it with corporate teams (in my life as a corporate trainer) as a warm up for strategic planning and unity sessions. It provided many laughs, got everyone relaxed and open, thinking creatively and ready to accomplish great things together.<\/p>\n

As further insight and comparison I sometimes followed \u201cYes and\u201d with its cousin \u201cYes but\u201d. \u00a0As you can imagine the game loses it sparkle, humor and fun and falls flat as open \u2018and\u2019<\/em> is replaced by \u00a0closed \u2018but\u2019<\/em>. It has nowhere to go but down and fast. \u201cYES and\u2026.” is a great analogy for life.<\/p>\n

YES\u2026keeps us open to possibility, stretches our comfort zone, boosts our dopamine levels, increases overall motivation, and takes us to people, places, and ideas we never would have discovered had we stuck to our plans and habits. YES is a simple and powerful pathway to growth, connection, and happiness.<\/p>\n

I thought about conducting an experiment where I would say \u201cYES\u201d to everything for 30 days. The more I thought about it, it seemed the purpose would be defeated by the constant pressure to seek out new experiences and meet new people every single day. \u00a0Maybe one “YES” day a week would work\u2026 like Saturday. I mentioned the idea to my husband who is my Saturday buddie and it got a nod (he\u2019s a gamer).\u00a0 We will embark on the YES initiative soon!<\/p>\n

I\u2019m thinking Greek dancing lessons for the first one?? (kidding)<\/em><\/p>\n

YES has served me well in the past. A spontaneous “YES” to a pair of red shoes<\/a>\u00a0and the Red Shoe Project<\/a> that followed was how I began this incredible blogging and community building journey. Which I might add I could have never imagined and LOVE!<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve said YES several times in the last few days including:<\/p>\n