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So, I've been reading a lot of self-help books lately,
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not just 'cause it's my job and I'm fascinated with self-improvement, but 'cause...
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Fix me! Please, any of you, fix me!
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*cries* I'm broken... *sobs*
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And one that I read, that was incredibly thought-provoking
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was Brené Brown's "The Power of Vulnerability".
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Though the book has a lot of amazing insights, the one I want to talk about today is about play.
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So Brené's research stresses the importance of creative play to lead a life of joy.
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And what I actually found most surprising, is that she states that unharnessed creativity doesn't actually go anywhere.
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Instead, if you're not utilizing your creative self,
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it manifests itself as stress, judgment, anxiety and so much more awful stuff.
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And I thought this explains so much to me, because you know people who are like...
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Oh. Wow. No, I don't do any of that losery stuff.
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I mean, painting is just pointless, and dancing makes you look dumb, and pottery is just for idiots.
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I mean, I'm a super serious lawyer and I do incredibly serious lawyer stuff.
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I feel like we all know someone who just totally looks down on any kind of hobby or creative endeavor.
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And they're all just kind of bitter, right? And I was like....
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Oh, this is why, because they're not being creative.
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So all this repressed energy is just making them very unpleasant.
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And I know what you're thinking...
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Anna, you're just saying that because it's your job to be creative.
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I mean, some of us don't have that luxury.
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Some of us have- have families, careers in non-creative fields,
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and like hundreds of cats to take care of.
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First of all, you can play with your cats.
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And second, if you have a career in a creative field,
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I don't think that necessarily means you're using your creative energy.
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Let me explain.
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So Brené Brown describes two factors that determine play.
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They are: one, you never want it to end,
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and two, it has no discernible purpose.
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And when I heard this, I was like, wow,
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I don't know what in my life actually meets these two categories.
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Even though I get to be creative all the time, it doesn't necessarily feel like play?
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I mean it kind of feels like work.
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And sometimes I resent creativity, because
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there's so much pressure to be imaginative in order to be relevant or successful, which is not fun.
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It just feels like you're going insane.
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Okay! So are we gonna do this sketch about dicks this week?
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Well, we've never approached it from a satirical angle.
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Exactly! How I feel about dick pics is more of a confessional vlog style.
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"here's what i'll do to your dick", is a public service announcement
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that satirizes violence against fruits and vegetables, in an effort to demonstrate how ludicrous it is
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to send a photo of your genitalia to someone you don't know as a courting favor.
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I just don't think that dicks are on trend anymore. And if we want to...
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*talking over each other*
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Can we settle on like one idea? Just one idea, cats or dicks. That's all we have, cats or dicks.
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And I've started to make Brunei's stressed importance on play a huge factor in my life.
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Because I've definitely felt myself over time, become judgmental or bitter or anxious,
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if I'm not doing anything that brings me joy.
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I mean that just makes a lot of sense, right?
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And who wants to hang out with someone who's all those things?
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So recently, I've written down what is play for me?
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What do I love and I never want to end that has no discernible purpose other than it's fun?
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So I've been trying to dive more into like animation with poems like, "The Moment I Threw Your Toothbrush Away" and "p a l i n d r o m e".
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And I'm also doing a stop-motion project called allure that I'm incredibly excited about.
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And now you guys may think...
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Erm, hey! Those sound like they have a discernible purpose. As in, they're going on your channel.
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Yes, you're technically right.
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I will definitely put them up, but they don't have a real purpose,
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because they're kind of just one offs that I'm sinking money into
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that I can't necessarily make it to a bigger property.
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So they're purely passion projects and I've started to rediscover how much I really love animation.
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When I was a teenager,
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I actually wanted to be an animator at like Pixar or Disney.
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And I would pull all of these unintentional all-nighters,
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because I loved drawing so much.
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And though I'm not animating these personally,
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the process of making something from absolutely nothing come to life is still so wild and awesome to me.
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And beyond that, of course, I've tried to think of activities that fall into these categories.
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Like Nerf gun fights, hiking, camping, crafting,
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and trying to be much more engaged in those activities.
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To give myself more joy.
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But what about you? What activities are play for you?
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And are you doing them enough or are you doing them at all?
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I'm Anna Akana, stay right here for an animated ad from Miss Bethany Radloff.
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