Last weekend I shared a video of myself playing the electric guitar on social media. I’ve had a love affair with the guitar since I was a teenager, and the joy of plugging in and ringing out a fat power chord has not lost its shine. Today I want to talk about keeping things fun, and not taking ourselves too seriously.

While playing, I lost track of time. I forgot about everything around me while just focusing on playing the song right. That’s the beauty of doing something you love and being challenged by it at the same time. It takes you to a different plane. Athletes feel the same way when they get in the zone. It’s what psychologists call “flow” and I will discuss that in detail another time.

Life can be too serious at times. We all are faced with problems that loom over us. Deadlines seem to be everywhere in life – school, work, relationships, etc. When we only keep track of how difficult it is to be responsible, we forget about the life we’re being responsible for.

When I picked the guitar up last weekend, I was reminded of the days I used to be in a band. We’d play for hours, letting the world turn while we were busy pulling music from thin air. The fun we had making music made everything we were dealing with in real life easier to bare.

Now, as an adult, I need to remind myself from time to time that while my problems are real, I don’t need to be too serious about them. If experience has taught me anything, it’s that these problems will get solved eventually. The only question is how much stress do I want to put myself through while dealing with them.