How to add a little bit of a game to your life and why it’s cool
Any trustworthy expert will tell you that gamification is actually everywhere. And, well, depending on what you think and how you see the world you can agree or disagree with the statement.
However… Just recently I’ve been reading answers on Quora and found an amazing question which made me think.
What are some examples of gamification in the real world?
What would you say?
The first answer that comes to me is all the games we play every day or maybe not that often. Monopoly, chess, computer games… But they are examples of actual “game activities”, not gamification itself.
I would like to stop on non-game related life activities, which you can see as a bonus-level in the game or as a game itself.
- Your career.
You probably heard of the indie game where you had to create and develop a company making games selling them for profit. If not, Game Corp on Armor Games is what you need to play for the next few hours.
However, it’s not necessary that your career is connected to games.
You may start as a sales representative with low stats, experience, low salary and almost no skills to do your job. However, moving through levels and gaining personal connection, getting your boss and colleagues better and gaining skills you achieve a new level — Senior Sales Representative (or something). Well, maybe you want to see your career as a serious business with plenty of serious decisions and meaningful work, but it is really fun to see the process as a linear (and sometimes not!) game with a plot where you unlock achievements and gain perks.
Moving to the next level!
2. Your apartment
I could say “your life”, but this is too abstract and may include too many options for dealing with. However, if you ever played Sims, you know what I am talking about. If not, oh my god, you are missing a lot! Go and have some fun with Sims and come back to reading it. This article can wait, but Sims can’t!
I found so many apps and stuff for designing your apartment and just decorating it with useful and useless elements as one of the most engaging activities in the world. This is where you really get the flow, especially if you like what you do.
Next time, visiting IKEA, imagine that you are not just buying this new lamp because it’s funny, but you are purchasing a new item for your newly unlocked living room. This place desperately needs to be redecorated.
3. Your studies.
Or you can say “your school”, but it is not really about the institution but the achievements and skills you obtain here. If you have problems with motivation, you can see it as a challenging boss on the location preventing you from gaining some extra points for your finished work.
The hunting ghost of the eaten homework, the spooky deadline, missed classes and failed tests. It all looks like the elements of a true game you could have played if it really existed! But, wait?..
4. Your meal.
How many times have you followed tutorials and wanted to cook something really cool? How many times have a played games where you had to manage a restaurant or a cafe or even just a coffee shop?
Such everyday activity as cooking can be a fun game! Even (and especially) if you do not like cooking, you may find it enjoyable is you break the process of creating pasta in stages.
You can even go deeper and unlock achievements such as “Boiled the pasta for 4 minutes straight” or “Chopped the thinnest tomato slides possible in less than 1 minute”. Try it, it’s fun.
Maybe messy but fun.
Last level!
5. Your commute.
I know, you may not like it. Or you may like it. However, your commute is a sort of game you have to play every day to get to your work. You can choose to use a car, a bike, rollers, a bus or anything you like. You can also calculate the time you spend for each and find the fastest way to get to your job possible.
Don’t forget to reward yourself with something, or just be proud of your achievements. For example, you can ride for 45 minutes on a bike every day to your work. Which unlocks a bonus achievement “Amazing health and a chance to live 15 years longer than your peers”.
Does not that sound great?
________
Even though all the elements of the games don’t make your life gamified, it helps you to entertain yourself, make your life easier and sometimes less daunting or challenging.
Do you remember how we all coped with problems when we were kids? Do you remember how you would just imagine kicking the bullies’ butts just because you have been eating cabbage and it gave you all the strength? No? Well, no matter what your problem was and what it actually involved back then, it was nice to play it the way you wanted it is be.
Why not do the same thing today?
