The Passion Paradox: How to Keep Play as Play

In the early 1970s, Stanford psychology researcher Dr. Mark Lepper conducted a study with a group of young children that found those who had received a reward for completing a task experienced lower intrinsic motivation to perform that task in the future.

The Passion Paradox: We have a deep desire to chase our passions, but by chasing them, we may actually reduce our passion for them.

Three strategies for escaping the paradox: (1) Keep play as play, (2) Let work be work, and (3) Make work more playful.