Jane McGonigal: Gaming for a Better Future

<p style="text-align:start;"></p> <p>Mark speaks with Jane McGonigal, game designer and author of the new book, <em>Imaginable: How to See the Future Coming and Feel Ready for Anything, Even Things that Seem Impossible Today</em>. After she created a game to help herself recover from a debilitating concussion in 2009, Jane was inspired to build a more positive and collaborative world through the use of modern technology. Jane believes that games can generate a higher collective intelligence that can be put toward a better quality of human life. <br><br></p> <p><strong>Today, Commander Divine speaks with Jane McGonigal, game designer and author of the new book, </strong><strong><em>Imaginable: How to See the Future Coming and Feel Ready for Anything, Even Things that Seem Impossible Today</em></strong><strong>.Throughout all her work, Jane advocates for the use of modern technology to create a more positive and collaborative world. In this episode, Jane and Mark discuss how to translate gaming skills into real life, how games can help us prepare for the future in an uncertain world, the importance of imagining positive future scenarios, and more.</strong><br><br><br></p> <p><strong>Key Takeaways:</strong><br><br></p> <ul> <li><strong>Translate gaming into real life.</strong> To maximize the positive skills learned from gaming, the critical questions to ask yourself (or your kids) is this: “What have you gotten better at since you started playing this game?” If the gamer can answer this question, they’ll have a much better chance that the game will produce a positive impact on their identity in the real world (vs. a pathological gaming addiction or means of escapism). <br><br></li> <li><strong>Don’t spend all your time playing one game.</strong> Jane suggests exposing yourself to new games so you’re always growing. In fact, in aging seniors, there's less risk of cognitive decline and fewer symptoms of dementia for people who expose themselves to games that they've never played before.<br><br></li> <li><strong>Gamer