Joe Robinson - Dont Miss Your Life: Find More Joy and Fulfillment Now

Table of Contents

Live!
And do not be ashamed
to be happy
Sing and sing and sing
The beauty of being
A lifelong learner.

Theres much to be grateful for at the end of the wrestling match of writing a book, such as being finished. Id like to express my appreciation to everyone who lent his or her time, expertise, support, thoughts, and in the case of the life enthusiasts profiled here, passions, for this adventure to take flight.

Ive been hashing out the intersection of work and life for years with Ran Klarin, covering topics all over the struggle-to-get-a-life map, from the siren of ambition to leisure motivation. His input and thoughts were very important to this project, bringing clarity and perspective when they were needed. Many thanks for the sounding board and support. Ran, who runs a workshop program called Living the Dream Deferred, also steps up to the plate with his own story of cultivating a passionpaintingin chapter 8.

Im very grateful for the help of Catherine OKeefe, professor of leisure and therapeutic recreation at the University of Southern Alabama, whose feedback and insights for this project were invaluable. Her enthusiasm for the power of leisure to uplift lives on this planet is inspiring. I want to mention that there are hundreds of recreation and leisure instructors and researchers at colleges around the nation who provide an amazing and woefully undervalued resource to improve the national quality of life. This land would be a lot less racked and awash in medical bills if we paid attention to them.

Many thanks to all of the researchers and experts who were kind enough to share their time and work with me. Tim Kasser at Knox College and Kennon Sheldon at the University of Missouri provided great insights into the world of self-determination theory and goal motivation. A big shake to psychologist, prolific author, and brother in the ways of soulful and playful experience Bradford Keeney, for bringing together movement, play, and global traditions for me. Leaf Van Boven of the University of Colorado illuminated the fascinating realm of experience, while Lynn Barnett-Morris of the University of Illinois inducted me into the science of playfulness. Im very grateful for the thoughts of Seppo Iso-Ahola of the University of Maryland, one of the seminal researchers in the slipstream where health, psychology, and leisure meet. The University of Utahs David Compton, a pioneer in the role of leisure and mental health, provided me with a storehouse of background and leads. Thanks to John de Graaf, author of Affluenza and national coordinator of the Take Back Your Time Campaign for bringing me into contact with many of these people and for his efforts to raise the value of time off-task and help Americans get their lives.

I want to give a big thank you to Suzanne Gluck at William Morris Endeavor for seeing the possibilities in this project and making it fly. Now its time for those salsa lessons. Caroline Donofrio at WME provided great support and advice throughout. Id also like to tip the hat to Elizabeth Tingue and Mina Shaghaghi for their contributions. Im particularly grateful to Tom Miller at John Wiley & Sons, who made this book happen and who appreciated that a realm the world doesnt take seriously is seriously wonderful. I want to thank Lisa Burstiner at Wiley for all her efforts in making these pages clearer, and better, with a pro copy editing effort.

Thanks to all the life enthusiasts who were kind enough to open up their passions to me and let me join in with them: orienteers Brad Wettmore and Werner Haas; kite flier Amy Doran; dragon boat paddlers Kathy King, Cindy Roberts, Tobi Goldberg Maguire, Linda Bloom, Karen Lynch, Nancy Glasgow, Vilma Mazziol, Robin Parker, Sheila McElwee-Witmer, Andrea Reiss, and the Hope Afloat team; rock climber Sara Lingafelter; mentor Mary Forgione; birder Eddie Bartley; badminton maniac Nao Kumagai; poet Adwin David Brown; cyclists Mike Valenti and Linda Imle; choir singers Sheila Gross, Felicia Kelly, and Laeticia de Lagasneri; inspiring hand-cyclists Oz Sanchez and David Lee; hockey player Sonja Rodriguez; equestrian Nellie Own; potter Tony Scott; dancers Briel Naugle and Richard Weinberg; kayaker Chris Joosse; painter Bill Selmon; aikido practitioners Gabriel Guzman, Erica Gipson, and Laurent McComber; surfer Ally Sycip; fly-fishing fanatic Darrell Kunitomi; kickballer Ariana Mayman; salsa dancer Kathy Smolik; softball coach Kim Travis; big band musicians Stuart Lease, Bob Edwards, Maggie McNeil, and Colleen Foster; potters Wade Lindsay and Mira Marshall; waterfall hunter Chris Shaffer; and tai chi chuan artist Ian Glazer. I had a great time and got plenty inspired by your lust for living.

I wouldnt have been able to find the life intelligence practitioners in these pages without a hand from a variety of instructors and advocates. Special thanks go out to Maggie Wheeler of the Golden Bridge Community Choir; Tommye Giacchino at Chicago Dance; Allison Hargis of the North Coast Band; Karl Grignon at Shoshin Aikido Montreal; Morty Bacar at Lakeside Pottery in Stamford, Connecticut; Scott Rodell at Great River Taoist Center in Washington, D.C.; and John Barresi at kitelife.com.

Designer Susan Dworski at theBlueOne.com provided graphic help on this project, in addition to her usual great advice and steady stream of grist, as she calls it. One of the most inveterate life enthusiasts I know, she also tells the story of one of her host of passions in chapter 8. Imagineer and designer Sue Baechler at Originaliti.com brings the spirit of play and fun to every day. She provided wonderful encouragement and insights throughout this process.

Finally, I want to acknowledge my good friends who have supported me along the way. Brazil-based Chris McGowan, coauthor of The Brazilian Sound, was instrumental in fomenting my passion for samba over the years and was a great supporter of this project, from editorial feedback to social media marketing tips. Many thanks, and to Monica Ferreira as well. Frida Silva brought a big burst of inspiration from Rio de Janeiro, guiding me through the samba highlights of my life in Rio, translating, and providing energy and love on a long and winding road. Beijos and muito obrigado. My special thanks to Tom and Kathy Freston for their encouragement for this project and my work. Jeff Sievert kept me supplied with a steady stream of references and food for thought, including the Alan Watts audio archives. Much appreciated, mate. Marty Herman, Michael Justice, David Langer, Anchora Siprosert and John Vasey all lent valuable feedback or assistance. Marty got me into salsa and provides us all with a lesson in determination in chapter 3, so he needs a special gracias here. As usual, my parents, John and Helen Robinson, were there 100 percent. Theres no way I can thank them enough for everything. Theyve lived the philosophy of this book, from camping and road trips to long-distance biking into their seventies. Both did one-hundred-mile races known as centuries. My dads not able to take his bike out anymore as a result of illness, but theres nothing hed rather be doing than biking. This ones for you, Dad, and the passto hills joined and conquered.