photo by wouter walmink

Looking for a surefire way to acquire a “Full-Blown” case of Adultitis?

Two words: air travel

The experience of flying is guaranteed to morph even the most “glass half full” type of person into a cynical scrooge – or your money back. (Ha!) Who knew a hefty case of Adultitis was free with the price of a plane ticket? And being the contagious disease that it is, it’s quite tricky to escape the spread when you’re quarantined in small planes and stuffy airports.

I’ve been noticing more and more complaints on Facebook from my road warrior speaker friends. The stressors are obvious: uncommunicated delays, extra fees, overcrowded planes, kicking toddlers (aka Lucy), smelly food, overly talkative seatmates, edgy flight attendants, oversized bags in overhead bins, and we haven’t even started to talk about security screening. I call it the Super Security Shuffle, as you wiggle your shoes and belt off and shimmy all of your electronics out of your bags. Fun stuff!

“The flying experience is terrible,” says Anne Banas, executive editor of SmarterTravel.com. “You’re getting less legroom. People fight over things like capacity in overhead bins. Airlines are charging bag fees. … Airlines are doing things that are making it more difficult and uncomfortable for the passenger, and the customer service isn’t getting that much better. You compound those factors, and you have a lot of frustration in the air.” Frustration can lead to bad manners. (Source: USA Today)

And that it does. It’s almost as if manners and common courtesy are checked at the curb with your luggage.

“People ask us all the time how do you combat the rudeness,” Lizzie Post says. “I go out there, and I’m one less rude person. You consider things. I’m not going to bring my really smelly fish leftovers on the plane. I’m going to bring a turkey sandwich. Bring along headphones to block out noise, and it’s fine to politely inform a seatmate that you’re not in the mood to chat.” (Source: USA Today)

I agree with Lizzie. In fact, I think you can even take this a step further. Instead of the “If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em” mentality – why not try to fight Adultitis head-on with some proactive fun? Here’s a list of 5 ways to combat Adultitis as you fly. You’ll notice this list is not your average ho-hum list of ways to stay positive and let things go — it’s an aggressive approach to fighting the frustrations that lead to Adultitis in the skies. Hope this helps your next trip go more smoothly…with a LOT more fun.

1. Chocolatey Happiness
Pack a bag of bite-sized Snickers in your carry-on and give them out as needed. “But when?” you might be asking. You’ll know. For example, you might share a few as a thank you to the airline employee helping you reschedule a delayed flight or to the guy who was willing to change seats with you so that you could sit next to your hubby. My favorite idea, though, is to share some with the kid behind you with the kicking problem. And if nothing else, you can eat them for dinner when you’re stuck at your gate with no plane. Chocolate is a good quick cure for pending Adultitis. Guaranteed.

2. Instant Smile Factory
Wear something that will automatically generate smiles from complete strangers. What you pick is based on YOU and what fits your personality. Here are some ideas: A goofy hat with fake hair attached (here and here), fun t-shirts (here, here or here), a clown nose (have extra to pass out to enthused fans), a cupcake beanie, a mullet, funny glasses, or Billy Bob teeth. The grumpy seasoned traveler behind you in line might actually crack a smile when he sees someone not taking themselves too seriously, which might actually challenge him to do the same. Ya never know… pigs may fly.

3. Planning for Prevention
Everyone is freaked out about getting through security. As long as you leave your shotgun at home, security is not as scary as it’s made out to be. Jason and I have found a number of very simple things you can do ahead of time to help things go smoother. It’s amazing what shortcuts you learn when you log 34 flights with a baby. Here are a few of my favorites:

• wear pants without a belt
• get some slip-on shoes
• leave your watch in your carry-on
• pack all of your liquids in the bag you are checking
• pack an empty water bottle in your carry-on to fill at a water fountain once you’re past security
• make sure you have a few healthy snacks in your carry-on for delays
• pack earplugs and/or an iPod.

Those poor TSA folks are at the highest risk for Adultitis (being surrounded by anxious and frustrated people all day), so be sure to share a smile and a hello. They are people too, even if they may look like robots.

4. BYOF (Bring Your Own Fun)
Delays and cancellations: inevitably the quickest way to Full Blown Adultitis. It’s almost unavoidable, unless you plan ahead for an alternative fix amidst the frustration. Bring your own fun to pass the time in case your trip is extended longer than you had thought. You’ll be surprised how many people around you instantly make eye-contact and initiate interaction when they see you’re actually willing to let yourself have fun, especially in a time when you should not be (according to the Adultitis-sufferers). Pack things like 3D drawing pads, a light-up disco bouncing ball, colored bubbles (be sure to transfer to a 3 oz. container), a friendship bracelet kit, a yodelling pickle, gnome bowling, or even desktop cornhole. Who says you HAVE to sit and mope while you wait and wait and wait?

5. Share and Share Alike
You know THAT moment, when the flight has been delayed a third time and the reality is setting in that people will definitely NOT be making their connecting flights. Ouch. Shortly after the news sets in, you can cut the Adultitis with a knife. It would be nice to lighten the mood. Be the bearer of gifts. Provide your neighboring passengers with something fun to lighten things up. Your carry-on can fit a few tchotchkes that will get your fellow flight-mates smiling again. How about packing a bunch of tiny umbrellas for their drinks, temporary tattoos, tiny rubber duckies, leis, pirate eye patches, or sticky hands. People LOVE to receive something free – no matter how small or meaningless it might be. And in the end, seeing all of their surprised smiles will really cheer YOU up too.

What other ideas do YOU have for fighting Adultitis while flying?

photo by fritzon

1) Don’t overuse zoom. Zoom-happy movies scream amateur and make audiences sick. Take a look at your favorite TV shows; they hardly ever zoom in or out on anything. Usually, they keep the camera stationary and let the subject do the moving. If you want to get a close-up on something, zoom in BEFORE you push record. It’s ok to use this handy feature once in a while, but don’t overdo it.

2) Ditch the digital zoom. Lots of cameras have a digital zoom feature. Don’t use it. It’s basically using an internal computer to “guess” at what the subject looks like from a closer range, and just ends up with a blurry image. If you do use zoom, stick to the optical zoom.

3) Let there be light. Lighting is a huge key to a nice looking video. Natural lighting is best, but wherever you shoot, try to make sure there is plenty of good light around your subject. Of course, a darkened room and a birthday cake adorned with candles provides great ambiance, but 20 minutes of a family gathering in a dimly lit basement rec room with dark paneling spells disaster. Also, avoid backlighting like the plague! Make sure your subject has plenty of light in front of it, or you’ll end up shooting faceless shadows.

4) Sound is underrated. Believe it or not, people are more willing to put up with a less than stellar image if the sound is good. If the sound is bad, they’ll go running for the hills, even if the image is crystal clear. It’s always better to have a microphone in the front of the camera rather than the back. At the very least, try and control background noise as much as possible and get close as to your subject as you can (unless you’re filming polar bears.)

5) Diversify your angles. Again, if you watch even a little bit of TV, you’ll notice that they almost never stay with one angle for more than 5 or 10 seconds. Try close ups, wide angles, bird’s eye views (from above), worm’s eye views (from below), and any other unique angles you can dream up. It will make your movie much more visually interesting.

6) Leave the special effects for later. These days, most video cameras have tons of special effects controls. Ignore them. It’s better to add the special effects later with video editing software. That way you always have a pure copy of your footage. You can always make that footage sepia-toned, but you can’t make a sepia-toned video full color. (Well, not without a professional and buckets of money.)

7) Ditch the date stamp. Yeah, it’s nice to know when a video was shot, but do that by labeling the tape or DVD. I’ve never seen a Spielberg blockbuster with the date and time it was shot in the corner of the screen.

8) Shoot more than the main action. Get video of some details for a richer final production. For example, if you’re on vacation, get some footage of pertinent signs, landmarks you visited, and restaurants you ate at. A quick shot of the waves rolling on the beach can be a nice opening shot that cuts to your rugrats building a sand castle. If you’re filming the first day of school, get shots of your little one getting ready at the beginning of the day and sharing her thoughts while standing in front of the school sign at the end of the day.

9) Mind the details. It’s easy to get so focused on the main subject that you ignore the other details in the frame. Make sure there isn’t a tree growing out of Johnny’s head or an unsightly garbage can in the corner of Sally’s first communion video.

9.5) A Bonus Tip! Avoid centering your subject in the middle of the viewfinder. Professional cinematographers often set up the shot with the subject lined up off-center, using the rule of thirds. It makes for a far more interesting composition.

If you enjoyed this post, you might also find this one useful: Five Tips for Phenomenal Photos of Your Kids

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I always imagined the skin of a dolphin would feel like a wet rubber Batman suit.

Nope.

I’d touched a dolphin before, at Seaworld. But only the part under the nose (the chin, I guess?). Now THAT felt like a wet rubber Batman suit. And so it was with great surprise that when Kim and I got to swim with dolphins during our trip to the Florida Keys to celebrate our tenth anniversary, the side of the dolphin did not feel as I expected. It’s hard to describe, really. There’s a texture to it. Were I not aware that I was feeling a living, breathing animal, I would have sworn it was a man-made material. Like something that should cover the dashboard in a Ford Mustang. Although I can’t quite describe how it feels, I can describe how it would sound if it were dry and I rubbed my fingernails back and forth against it: it would make a “zip zip” sound.

Not sure if that helps.

Swimming with dolphins has been on our Bucket List for a long time. After having done it, I can’t wait to do it again — maybe when Lucy’s older! — but since nothing is guaranteed and there aren’t any dolphins living in any of Madison’s four lakes, it definitely falls into a potential once-in-a-lifetime experience for us.

The whole thing happened way too fast. It didn’t help that we woke up at 4:00 that morning to take a taxi to the airport in order to catch the first of two flights and then drive two hours in our rental car before finally arriving at Theater of the Sea precisely five minutes before our scheduled check-in time at 3:30 p.m. It turned out to be much more hurried than we’d planned, but a delayed flight and lack of available rental cars have the habit of spitting on the best laid plans.

About halfway through our experience, the following thoughts bolted through my brain: Omigosh, it’s almost over! Am I enjoying it enough? Am I fully present? Am I appreciating the moment? I was worried that I came all this way and spent all this money and now it was almost over and I hadn’t really appreciated it.

It’s a tortuous question to ask oneself, because how do you judge whether or not you are sufficiently enjoying or appreciating something?

After some careful deliberation, I realized that a better question would be, “How will I remember this?” Because really, the point of being “present” is to be open to the details of an experience, which ultimately impact the richness of the memory. My biggest fear had nothing to do with not enjoying my time with the dolphins — I was — but rather having nothing but a foggy blur to remember after the experience was over.

Fortunately, I was able to do some things that served me well in this regard. Perhaps they will serve as useful tools the next time you find yourself in the middle of one of those “once-in-a-lifetime” experiences.

A dolphin gets fresh with Kim.

2.) Breathe Deep
With my body still in overdrive from the day’s hurried pace, I felt like I was drowning in a sea of thoughts, with my brain gasping for air. So I decided to breathe. There is no better way to immediately halt hurriedness than with a few deep breaths. Busyness numbs your senses like novocaine, but deep breathing perks up your ability to see, hear, taste, smell and touch, allowing you to fully engage in the moment.

3.) Be Okay with Overwhelm. (Besides, You Don’t Have A Choice.)
After the breathing exercise, I began thinking more clearly. I realized that I had a lot of “firsts” going on simultaneously. Not only was it my first time swimming with dolphins, but it was my first time in the Florida Keys, my first time wearing flippers, my first time swimming in water in which I could actually see fish flitting by me. I’m no expert, but I have to think that anytime you are bombarded by the stimuli of multiple new experiences at once, it’s a little hard to feel like you’re calmly “in the moment.” If my mind felt like it was processing like crazy, it’s because it was. So I gave myself permission to feel overwhelmed by the experience. Interestingly, that helped ease my mind.

4.) Document the Experience
Although I wish I would have been more conscious of the breathing thing from the get-go, I promised myself that I would write down the things that I heard and saw and felt as quickly as possible after the experience. Even though things felt like they were going so fast, I knew my senses were firing on all cylinders and picking up details subconsciously — vibrant details that would eventually fade over time. Being able to refer back to them later would help me to relive the moment. So shortly after settling in to our hotel in Key West, that’s exactly what I did.

Here are a few thoughts I jotted down in my journal:

• How do people walk in flippers? Seriously. Although they were awkward enough in the water, when walking on land, my steps we so exaggerated that I felt like a giant, enthusiastically crushing miniature invisible villages with my feet.
• I was expecting more of a swimming pool type environment, but instead we were in a man made lagoon, replete with a mossy floor and tiny shiny fish buzzing around. I wondered if I could catch one with my hand. (Nope.) I hoped that none would swim into my mouth while doing the activities.


Ah...a refreshing mouthful of salt water.

• I took in a face full of salt water during the dorsal tow, in which you grab the dolphin’s top fin and he pulls you across the pool. You prepare by going to the other side and giving the signal, which is you floating in the deep water in a “T” formation with your arms extended straight out. I didn’t see the dolphin coming up beside me, so it was at the last moment in which I grabbed the fin. Since my primary concern was “don’t let go!” it was with no surprise that my eyes and mouth were given the salt water treatment. Fortunately I didn’t collect any fish in the process.
• I loved being able to hug the dolphin in the water. There was a real feeling of connectedness and a thrilling sense of the animal’s power. I decided that I never wanted to run into a great white shark, and was happy that dolphins are pretty nice fellows, because the one I was with could have easily kicked my butt if it wanted to.
• During the buddy swim, in which the dolphin accompanies you for a swim around the lagoon, I got another opportunity to feel his wonderfully textured skin. The trainer warned us not to get into a race and assured us that if we did, we certainly would not win. As we made our way around, I couldn’t help but feel he was thinking, “let’s go, slowpoke!” After all, while I was working extraordinarily hard trying to get the hang of the flippers while not poking him in the eye with my flailing arms, it seemed like he was standing still. I felt like a 95-year-old grandpa being helped across the street by an NFL linebacker. But through it all, the dolphin itself seemed somehow very patient and understanding.
• There were two different dolphins on duty with us. I regret that I didn’t write down their names, because now I’ve forgotten them. Slippy. Sammy. Something. Proof positive of the importance of writing stuff down. Even the most vibrant memories can fade over time.

5. Enlist the Experts
Everybody’s favorite way to document an experience for later reminiscing is by taking photos and videos. The trick is finding the balance between capturing the experience and having the picture-taking actually become the experience.

We debated whether or not to have the on-site photographers shoot pictures and video on our behalf. I used to think it was one of those overpriced scams to get tourists to part with even more money. We even brought a disposable underwater camera to have the option of doing it ourselves. But then I realized the obvious: these guys are experts. They have professional cameras. They know when the cool stuff is going to happen, and they’re ready for it. So we decided to splurge and let them handle it, and I am so happy that we did. Suddenly the fee became a bargain, as I could focus my attention on the dolphins and not some stupid camera. I was able to more fully immerse myself in the experience and it was nice not feeling like I was going to miss a money shot while fumbling with the flash.

[UPDATE: Just watched the video for the first time, and in the intro, they included the names of the dolphins we swam with: Stormy and Duffy. Nice. Money well spent.]

These are a few of the tips I’ve tried to make the most of the once-in-a-lifetime experiences. What’s worked for you?

We recently celebrated our 10th wedding anniversary in Key West, Florida. With the little one in excellent hands back home, we had a chance for some good old-fashioned doin’ nothing.

While soaking up some rays and enjoying the surf, we were hit with some bits of wisdom regarding stressing less and having more fun. So we decided to create a six-part video series sharing some of the thoughts we had while we were in a Key West state of mind. In this first tip, Kim discusses the importance (and benefits) of taking time to “look up” from the busyness of life once in a while.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Sign up to receive our free newsletter to get regular reminders and tips for stressing less and having more fun. Consider it a well-deserved jolt of happiness for your inbox.

Several years ago, we held an official Escape Event, in which we challenged Kim & Jason Nation to “do something fun that is inspired by one of your favorite movies!” Jim and Lisa Warsinske borrowed a bit from Driving Miss Daisy and Chevy Chase’s Vacation, and not only won six movie tickets, but created a perfect way to have fun in ANY economy.

I’ve been sharing this little gem with audiences everywhere I go. Here’s a clip from a recent speaking gig in Milwaukee:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Learn more about bringing Jason in to your organization to help them turn stress into laughter, rejuvenate their passion, and achieve work life balance.

photo by ohhector

One person starts the conversation with any random statement. Immediately, the next person has to follow that up with a statement or question that has absolutely NOTHING to do with the previous one.

“I have to change the oil in my Honda.”

“Don’t you just adore eggplant?”

“Those postage stamps are quite colorful.”

On and on the game goes until someone hesitates or trips up and responds with something relevant. Pausing for a second is bad. Being relevant is bad. For instance, if you replied to the first statement above about the Honda, “My car needs a brake job,” you’re out, baby.

Up the level of fun and difficulty by seeing just how fast you can keep the crazy conversation going.

P.S. I cannot be held responsible for anyone who may be inadvertently taken off to the looney bin during the course of playing this game. I say we blame the nursing home social worker.

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Often as adults, we get trapped into the thinking that we have to constantly chase the “bigger and better,” especially when it comes to vacations. Well, that can get expensive. In this video, I share some thoughts on escaping adulthood by investing in smaller, but no less gratifying, delights:

iPod Version (20 MB)

Last weekend was Kim & Jason Escape Event #3. The challenge was simply this: Do something fun that is inspired by one of your favorite movies!

Kim and I got talking about “our song” and remembered that it played a big role in the movie Karate Kid, Part II. The song I speak of is Peter Cetera’s “Glory of Love”, which was a #1 hit in the U.S. and won an Academy Award nomination for best song from a film.

We heard it on the radio while we were on our first date, Valentine’s Day, 1995. We both said how much we loved the song upon hearing it in the car on the way to Monical’s Pizza. Ironically (or maybe not so, considering it was Valentine’s Day), we heard it again while sitting in the restaurant. We each ended up buying the CD, and it ultimately became the first song we danced to as husband and wife.

Well, this weekend Karate Kid, Part II showed up on cable, and we realized that we had never actually seen the movie together. So after a busy weekend hosting family, we camped out on the couch and watched the old 80s classic together. I was surprised to learn just how extensive Kim’s crush on Ralph Macchio really was, and Kim was surprised to learn that I had created cardboard action figures based on the characters in the film. (They were pretty sweet, too. Their legs and arms were joined by pieces of rubber band, giving them authentic karate chop action. Hey, these are the sorts of things introverted creative types do…)

For those of you looking for a trip back in time, here’s a video with “Glory of Love” playing over some highlights from the movie:

* * * * *

Ok, now on the WINNER of Escape Event #3 and a set of six movie passes — Club K&J member Lisa Warsinske of Wisconsin! Lisa and her husband Jim took a little inspiration from Driving Miss Daisy and Chevy Chase’s Vacation to create this classic Escape Event moment. I’ll let Lisa describe it in her own words:

I know, I know – the cost of gas… blah blah blah. BUT you have to find the fun!! This weekend, cool hubby Jim and I took (70 year old fun-loving) Mom to dinner. In and effort to participate in the Escape Event #3 and to have fun along the way – I taped an empty soda cup (complete with lid and straw) on the roof of the van.

It was taped on, not going anywhere and empty – get it? So we go for a nice drive around town…one son and I were in the back seat watching the folks on the street who would spot the cup on our van. There was honking and waving and pointing and yelling…

What fun ensued!!! People are PASSIONATE about letting you know there is a cup on your car. We just wave back and act like we have no idea what they are saying to us, or why they are pointing up. Mom was so funny riding shotgun, giving people a nice smile and oblivious wave accompanied with a cheery thumbs up.

One guy on a bicycle saw us enter Riverside park (LaCrosse, WI) and he rode his bike really fast to the other side to head us off and told us about the cup. Jim admitted to him that it was taped on for a joke and the guy says “Man. That’s a good one. You should video tape it. But hey – promise me you won’t do that with a fake baby!”

Other highlights: A teenager screamed “Taco Bell on the roof!” A man on a sidewalk called out “There’s a cup up there.” Which is fun to say repeatedly and fast. (There’s a cup up there. There’s a cup up there.) It makes my lips tingle with silliness.

A whole volleyball team stopped their game at the beach to scream “STOP!! You have to Stop!!!” Mom just smiled and waved cute. I find our outing a fine combination of the Chevy Chase “Vacation” movie with a little “Driving Miss Daisy” thrown in.

A fine combination, indeed! Cheers to Lisa and Jim for an absolutely stellar Escape Event performance!

I finally got around to posting some pictures from the Seattle trip. (Check out my Escape Adulthood photo album) It’s hard to sum up the whole experience in photos. I think that when people go to visit new places, they try and take a million pictures of everything they see and do. And they end up taking the same standard shots that everybody else takes. In most cases, the pictures never do the place justice, and you’re always a little disappointed that you weren’t able to capture the "feel" of the place. Somehow, your photos never end up as good as the postcards you bought in the hotel gift shop.

Of course, my iPhoto album is jammed with way too many boring shots of the Seattle skyline that I took while on the Bremerton ferry. But I tried to make a conscious effort to look at things just a little bit differently. We bought a few really good "skyline" postcards and then I focused on small slices of Seattle; the little things. Surprisingly, I have found that these shots end up doing a much better job of helping me to remember the feeling I had while there. They capture the specific flavor and unique feel of my personal experience.

Next time you find yourself someplace new and want to chronicle your visit, don’t try to photograph everything. Focus on the little things that catch your eye. The things that give you that tiny spark of childlike wonder. Feel free to pick up a few picture perfect postcards in the gift shop if you want to. But a few years down the line, those postcards will be in a neglected shoe box somewhere, while one of those photos you took with a childlike perspective will be on a wall, starting spirited conversations and stirring up treasured memories.