Play It Away: A Workaholic's Cure for Anxiety (14 page)

It took me two months in Asia to realize: I don’t need to be on vacation in order to play. I don’t even need to stop working. I can always do it.
Play is a state of mind.

Now, my life is a series of opportunities to have fun. The world is a playground. The people around me are playmates. And most importantly, my work is a game. Instead of killing myself for future success, I work to feel alive right now.

Of course, my life isn’t perfect. Bad things still happen, and I forget from time-to-time. But when I return to the things that make me truly happy — catch, making people laugh, creating art, playing with friends — my inner tension melts away. I’m no longer serious or worried. I don’t need alcohol or drugs to face the world. I can just be, and life is good.

When I think back on how much pain I used to hold in, I have to laugh. I spent all that time living in fear, when all I had to do was play it away.

7

How To Change The World

Every now and then, you’ll sense a looming darkness, as though something bad is about to happen. You might see it on your TV, or in the news, or in the panicked look on your friend’s face. The end is near, they’ll say, and it will be every man for himself.

This is the frightened narrative of the lonely individuals who have been chronically deprived of play. Their minds are clouded with fear, and they are on an endless hunt for potential threats to their survival.

You might not see it, but these people are very sad inside. They have tricked themselves into believing their world is a frightening prison. They’ve fallen out of touch with their friends, so they combat their isolation the only way they know how:
by bringing others into their fear.
And as that fear spreads, they all forget how to bond, and share, and laugh, and love. They forget that life is a ride.

Fortunately, you don’t have to believe these people. In fact, you can help them. And you know exactly how to do it.

If you’re ready to play, put down this book, pick up your phone, and reach out to someone you care about. Say this:

Life has been feeling too serious lately. I want to take a break and do something fun. Want to play?

Then get outside and play. Whether it’s catch, or a pickup game, or just a long walk… go do something fun right now that will bring you together with the people you love. And when you’re finished, tell them to play it forward by asking their friends to do the same.

You don’t need more free time. You don’t need more money. You can change the world when you change how you see it. It’s only a choice.

Play is a state of mind
– it’s a way to approach the world. Whether your world is a frightening prison or a loving playground is entirely up to you.

Will You Do Me A Solid?

If you enjoyed
Play It Away
, would you mind taking a minute to write a review on Amazon? Even a short review helps, and it’d mean a lot to me.

If someone you care about is struggling with anxiety or workaholism, please send him or her a copy of this book. Whether you gift it to them on Amazon or email a copy of the PDF makes no difference to me.

If you’d like to order copies of this book for your company, school, or group of friends, please go to playitaway.me/order.

Finally, if you’d like to get free bonus materials from this book and receive updates on my future projects, you can sign up for my newsletter at
CharlieHoehn.com
You can also follow me on Twitter @charliehoehn.

Life awaits. Go play!

Thank You

To all the good people who kept me sane:

Jeff Waldman, Molly Fiffer, Jason Hemmerle, Debbie Phillips- Thanks for being such good friends during my year of quiet crazy. Teddy Mekuria, Nick Carrel, Chris Wasley- Thanks for not letting me take my seriousness too seriously. Chad Mureta, Jason Adams- Thanks for reminding me how important it is to play at work. Laura Garner- Thanks for being a great friend when I wasn’t. Lubys Concepción- Thank you for being so loving. Emily Pfau- Thanks for putting up with all of my nonsense.

Tucker Max- I can’t express how grateful I am for your constant support, wisdom, and generosity. In spite of the title you’re famous for, I’ve only known you as one of my most encouraging, loyal, and generous friends. Thanks for being you, and remember: You can take my free rent, but you’ll never take MY FREE WORK!

Tim Ferriss- I was extremely lucky to have the good fortune of working with one of my heroes. You presented me with more incredible opportunities than I knew what to do with, all while shaping me into the person I wanted to be. I can never fully repay you for all you did for me; I just hope to do you proud by paying it forward. For your guidance, your books, and most of all, for showing me what was possible... Thanks, meng.

Ramit Sethi- Thank you for taking a shot on that eager kid who wanted to work on something fun. Your early support catapulted me into the exact position I hoped to be in, and I wouldn’t have ended up here without you giving me that first boost. As much as I’ve appreciated having you as a colleague, you’ve also been a great and hilarious friend. I will pay you back for the dating ad you set up for me. I don’t forget.

Seth Godin- Thank you for the inspiration you’ve provided on a daily basis for all these years. You showed me the importance of doing work that matters, and not settling for a job just to pay the bills. This path is not without its challenges but, as you said, it’s worth it.

Erin Tyler, Ryan Holiday, Nils Parker, Ann Maynard, Tim Stiefler- The depth of your guys’ talents continues to blow my mind. I’m incredibly lucky to know you all as my good friends, colleagues, and role models. Thank you for offering your insight and expertise, which made this book so much better.

Divya Pahwa, Mohnish Soundararajan, Andrew Edstrom, Edward Druce, Matt Trinetti- Thank you all for enthusiastically executing my random ideas. You guys make a great team and have bright futures ahead of you.

My amazing beta readers! Alex McCafferty, Ali Roberts, Austin Granzow, Ben Boomer, Brad Hart, Carolynn Ananian, Chee Xiong, Chris Clark, Corey Wadden, Cortis Loukes, David Isaacson, Eric Gardner, Ian Borders, Ivana Sendecka, Janet Chang, Jessica Campbell, Justin Mares, Kate Little, Lindsay Holden, Marcie Barnes, Mary Katherine Sullivan, Matt Kress, Megan Snedden, Michael Gebben, Nick Altman, Robert Knutsson, Sachit Gupta, Scott Hughes, Therese Schwenkler, Tina Khera, Tina Shah, Yael Grauer, Zach Obront (I hope that’s everyone)- Thank you for reviewing the ugly first draft of this book. Your feedback made
Play It Away
into something special that I hope you’re proud to have been a part of. You guys rule.

Kinsellas, Pollocks, Cases- You tolerated two decades of tennis balls, pranks, and relentless juvenile behavior that would have driven most reasonable people to a new neighborhood. I’ll always consider you guys family. Thank you for never calling the cops.

Devin, Kelly, Michelle, Ryan, Wade, Steve, Joey, Justin, Austin, Jake, Tony, Kevin, Zach, Dave, Lance, Darrell, Pat, August, Em, Linds, Jenny, Katherine, Chrissy, Steph- No matter how much time passes between our encounters, we never skip a beat. We’ve been playmates for more than a decade, and I hope it remains that way for life.

Katie- You’ve been my primary prank target your entire life. Nothing has delighted me more than having a sister with a deathly fear of moths. Thank you for always having such dramatic reactions. Mystical strawberries.

Mom, Dad- You loved and supported me for the past 27 years of hair-graying decisions. Thank you for encouraging me to have fun, for raising us in such a playful environment, and for laughing off all the times I got into trouble (see: injuries, suspensions, MIPs, destruction of property, getting condiments and holidays banned… I’ll stop there). I only hope that all of my future successes result in me calling out, “What did I do?!”

To the rest of my family and friends who I’ve neglected to mention here- Thank you all for being so much fun. How lucky I’ve been to have such quality people surrounding me my entire life. I wish we could all live together and play whenever we wanted.

Last but not least, to my readers- It still amazes me that there are people I’ve never met, all over the world, who have been following and rooting for me for the last five years. From the bottom of my heart, thank you for letting me in.

Now, let’s sing and dance while the music is being played.

Love,

Charlie

Photo Credits

Thanks so much to all the people who took such sweet, sweet pics:

© Marcie Barnes

© Angélica Torres

© Judy Hoehn

© Erin Tyler

© Lubys Concepción

© Molly Fiffer

© Zach Roach

© Jeff Waldman

© Ryan Case

About the Author

Charlie Hoehn is an author, marketing strategist, speaker, and play enthusiast. After graduating from Colorado State University in 2008, he studied under and worked with a number of bestselling authors, such as Ramit Sethi, Seth Godin, and Tucker Max. He worked alongside Tim Ferriss during the production and launch of
The 4-Hour Body
, which hit #1 on the New York Times bestseller list and sold over a million copies.

Charlie is the author of
Recession-Proof Graduate: How To Land The Job You Want By Doing Free Work
, a popular career guide that’s been read more than 150,000 times. His work has been featured by The New York Times, NPR, CBS, TEDx, and Business Insider.

He is currently playing in Austin, Texas.