I was playing basketball the other day, and it dawned on me… there are very few things I do purely for enjoyment.

I was there on a Sunday afternoon by myself in an empty, underutilized beautiful hardwood court. No one had to convince me to play. I didn’t have to force myself or tell myself anything. The fact that I was alone didn’t bother me one bit. But in other areas of my life or activities/tasks, I find myself having so much resistance.

In motivation literature, there’s a framework of intrinsic vs. extrinsic motivation.

• intrinsic motivation,’ motivation from within where people do an activity because they enjoy it and get personal satisfaction from doing it.
• extrinsic motivation, where people are motivated by the outcome that will result from doing the activity.

I don’t have many things in life I do for pure enjoyment. Everything has an “in order to.” Or perhaps I start things for enjoyment, but in seeing any activity or project to fruition, my motivation shifts extrinsincally.

I play basketball for enjoyment. I used to take boxing fitness classes for pure enjoyment. Some workout classes were so fun and pleasant that I’d take it for enjoyment too.

What do you do purely for enjoyment?