The Game Is You: Adding Years to Your Life - Huffington Post

Click here to read an original op-ed from the TED speaker who inspired this post and watch the TEDTalk below.

“I’m a gamer,” said Jane McGonigal in her TEDTalk. “So I like to havegoals, like special missions, and secret objectives, “she added.” So here’smy special mission for this talk. I’m gonna try to Increase the lifespan ofevery reasonable person in this room by 7 1/2 minutes. “Jane McGonigal, is agame designer, has a Ph.D. from Berkeley, author of Reality is Broken , andhas researched the psychology of games for over a decade. She makes a boldstatement on the TED stage in her talk, “The Game That can give you 10 extrayears of life. “

In an audacious move by McGonigal Claiming to Increase the lifespan of heraudience, McGonigal, for Demonstration Purposes, gave the audience simplechallenges to boost four types of resilience – physical, mental, emotional,and social; which in. turn will add 7 1/2 minutes to Their life, she said.

And McGonigal concludes that “people who Regularly boost These four types ofresilience – physical, mental, emotional, and social live 10 years longerthan everyone else. “

Let’s back up a moment and put gaming into perspective.

Video games are a multibillion-dollar industry, the average player is 30years old, forty-five percent of all game players are women, and thirty-sixpercent of gamers play games on Their Smartphone, and 25 percent play gameson Their Wireless Device, According To the Entertainment SoftwareAssociation.

And, gaming or gamification in health is a hot topic today.

In gamification, people choose to set a goal And they can reach That goalwith motivation, challenges and collaboration from friends and family.Gamification is about engagement, interaction, collaboration, and sharedEfforts to Achieve the “win.”

Michael Wu, PhD, principle scientist of analytics at Lithium Technologiesdefines gamification in this way, “Gamification is Merely a tool fordriving behaviors, whichinclude engagement, interaction, competition,collaboration, awareness, learning, even to the extreme of obsession, andmuch more. “

And while FiercehealthIT Reports That the, “University of PittsburghTravel Researchers say video games as a powerful tool for Improving patient health,According To a Studyjust published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine , “it’s justThat, as Wu Stated, “Merely a tool.”

Employers are getting into the gaming space with “tools” for employees toimprovement and Achieve Their health and wellness goals; including shapeup,Healthrageous and S2H Challenge. Super Better , an online game designed tohelp you Achieve your health and wellness goals was created by JaneMcGonigal after she suffered a severe concussion.

But, the important message about gaming, about gamification, about “Addingyears to your life, “has to do with YOU. Did you notice That McGonigal’stalk is titled, “The Game That can give you an extra 10 years of life”? ITdoes not say, “The game thatwill give you 10 extra years of life.” There’s abig difference between “can” and “will.”

You Are not going to have Jane McGonigal sitting next to youeach day telling you what to do to Increase your lifespan by minutes oryears, and she’s not going to be there to providesprofessional you with challenges toIncrease your resilience – physical, mental, emotional, or social resilience. – Barbara Ficarra

Yes, the mechanics of the games, the “tools” needed to Achieve health andwellness goals, must be engaging and Provide a level of excitement and anelements for collaboration, but ultimately, your health and wellness goalsstart with YOU. You Are not going to have Jane McGonigal sitting next to youeach day telling you what to do to Increase your lifespan by minutes oryears, and she’s not going to be there to providesprofessional you with challenges toIncrease your resilience – physical, mental, emotional, or social resilience.For example, telling you to count backwards from 100 by 7, raise your armshigh in the air, snap your fingers exactly 50 times, or shake someone’shand. Health and wellness goals and lifestyle changes begin with you. Youcan have a happier and healthier life if you choose to take steps to createthe life you want. By taking staff responsibility for your ownwell-being, you have the power to add years to your life.

B.J. Fogg , author of Persuasive Technology: Using Computers to Change What We Think and Do , andpsychologist, directs the Persuasive Tech Lab at Stanford University, statesthat “three elements must converge at the same moment for a behavior toOccur: Motivation, Ability, and Trigger. “

So when you ultimately Decides you want to Achieve your health and wellnessgoals, Whether it’s eating healthier, losing weight, sleeping better, orIncreasing your physical activity, gaming May help, but remember, games areonly tools. You have the power to move the tools. You can be inspired byothers, Such as friends and family in your social networks and games canhelp ignite behavior change, but it first begins with YOU. Motivation tolive a happier and healthier life first begins with the power of you. Youcan add years to your life.

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