Ever notice how kids have no problem getting up to their antics? The only issues they have with it are the ones put on them by parents and supervisors. Kids have no trouble with it because they make it more enjoyable for themselves.

The imagination of a kid is something incredible. The ability to make a cardboard box and a blanket into a castle isn't something you see a lot in adults.

In our society, we have a way of beating the imagination out of people for one simple reason: imagination has little to no value for employees and growing up, we're all told to study well to get good jobs.

This leads to a big problem for many people; burnout, and pushing beyond it. To avoid burnout, you must make it more enjoyable, whatever it is. Here are three prime examples of this from my life.

1. Catholic history made interesting

I remember it like it was yesterday. Grade 11, catholic education class. I couldn't wait for class to start. We start with a brief prayer, then dive right into the day's lesson. Right off the bat, something doesn't seem right here: catholic history, of all subjects, had captivated a whole class of high school students.

I should not be the first one to tell you that learning about religious history is quite a dry subject. Ask any Catholic to explain their religion to you, and I guarantee you'll feel sleepy in minutes.

How then, was this class any different? Put simply, our teacher made it more enjoyable.

Throughout my life, one thing that's been common amongst Catholics talking about their religion is that they are very serious about it. Nothing wrong with being serious about your religion, but when you want to teach it to teenage kids, it's not the best approach.

So how was this teacher different? 

When explaining Pentecost to us, he explained it like this: crackpot Peter went out to the people and said to them, "You bastards, you killed Jesus!"

When we were learning about the council of Nicea, instead of saying St Nick slapped Arius, he said that Santa Claus punched somebody.

These are just a few examples of the kind of imagery he used to simultaneously teach us and hold our attention.

Moral of the story: Subject matter matters little if you can explain it in a way that's interesting.

2. Make your point

How many people do you know that struggle with getting their point across? I struggle with it sometimes too, but a key lesson I've learned is to share a few laughs. By having some laughs between everybody involved, guards are dropped and minds are opened.

What if I told you that stubborn people are stubborn only because they believe you can't see their point? Sharing a few laughs with them helps to remedy this.

Laughing, or making interaction more enjoyable, helps people to feel connected. When people feel connected, they are more open to other viewpoints.

I remember when I was teaching my little brother how to handle his girl problems, I would use humor to dispel any doubts or misconceptions rather than explaining them away.

Instead of explaining to him why he should avoid arguing with girls, I asked him, "Do you really want to deal with the headache?"

Instead of explaining why emotional rollercoasters work so well, I used the example of a pulse on a heart monitor to show him that it makes her feel alive.

This is important because these concepts go counter to modern-day advice on men's dating.

The lesson here: an easy way to explain your point is to use closely related imagery that can be easily understood. Once they understand it, they feel like they made the discovery themselves.

3. Motivation is temporary, results are (not exactly) eternal

By far, the biggest area where interest helps is with doing what you must do. Problem is, it's hard to pull that energy from within yourself every day. If only there was an easier way to do it.

Growing up, I did not like reading. Why would I? I was never allowed to read what I wanted, especially in school.

If this is the case, how exactly did I end up developing a reading habit? 

Due to my forays into becoming better with women, I discovered that I love learning about human nature, behavior, and psychology. Once that took place, I started down that rabbit hole with the use of books.

I've read so many books on the topic that a lot of the knowledge has become second nature to me.

Another instance of this is my language learning.

I used to watch a lot of anime and always wanted to learn Japanese. Problem is, I could never really stick to a consistent learning schedule.

I recently got back into it, when I hit another roadblock due to boredom. I thought this would be another instance of me dropping it when I discovered steam games that teach Japanese.

Without a second thought, I bought the games and have been using them ever since. I've found that using these games makes it so much easier to remember what I learned compared to writing it down and using flashcards.

In the first example, I developed a reading habit by identifying what I want to read. In the second example, I got back into language learning by finding a more engaging way to learn.

Nothing has to be as boring as society makes it out to be. In fact, there always seems to be a better way compared to how society at large does it.

The fun path or the established path?

These days, most people will not do things the more enjoyable way simply because they are too afraid of going off of the established plan. They rely on the security laid out for them and become weak as a result.

There's no point in security if it means your life becomes horrible, yet this is what many people are trading for. Instead of going about it in a way that sucks out your soul, find a way that keeps you invigorated toward life.

- Karl