Confession: I still sneak a visit through toy aisles when I’m shopping for my adult life.

It’s always exciting to see what’s new in the modern toy universe as I wonder what it would be like to set that Lego kit loose from its prison of plastic and cardboard.

I rarely buy anything because I’m an adult.  I’m too old for that nonsense and it’s immature. Bills are waiting at home and I need to Swiffer my kitchen.

But wait…..I’m lying a bit here.

That inner voice that tells me “you shouldn’t get that” is lying too.

I still buy toys like Nerf guns, trinkets for my desk and other weird items.

These purchases usually occur at three in the morning when I’m wide awake, scrolling through my phone trying to find peace in the adult cycle of wake up/work/sleep.

Recently I decided to jump into the Harry Potter universe since I’ve never read the books. I’ve never watched the movies either.

The other morning, while finishing a chapter of the first  book (the part where Harry is shopping with Hagrid), I had a great sense of childish adventure and delight. I loved the feeling of discovering something fun and new.

After putting the book down so I could get ready for the workday, a thought occurred to me:

You become a successful adult when you find the same joy in life as you did when you were a child.

Okay, so how do you find that joy/success?

Get over your adult self:

Perhaps it’s the trauma of realizing Santa isn’t real that made us become cautious with our own imaginations.

Accept the fact that some elements of adulthood aren’t real either, as we see through advertisements and other media designed to trick us into believing joy can be found in material wealth.

Only a few people in this world can afford to buy a Lexus for Christmas, complete with a big red bow parked out front of a $1.5 million-dollar home that looks like a museum.

When we were kids, we found joy near the swing sets and sandbox. There was no price of admission or requirement of high financing.

Get over others

Those who tell you to “grow up” are people who probably yearn for their lost childhood the most.

We often behave in certain ways and sacrifice our own happiness for the approval of others and for what society expects of us.

If someone makes fun of you for obsessing over something you like, whatever that may be, that is not your problem. Their own vacuum of sadness will try to suck the fun you’re having. Ignore these people.

Take a risk

I’m not talking about jumping off a cliff here.

I’m talking about trying things you’ve been cautious about because they’re not geared for adults.

We all have that inner voice that prevents us from doing what we really want. Over the years, that voice has gained power and is fueled by fear of embarrassment and social rejection.

We are afraid to find the same joy we had when we were kids because there is a certain belief that such carefree thought is carelessness. Not so.

I’ll end this post with this great quote from Walt Disney:

“Too many people grow up. That’s the real trouble with the world, too many people grow up. They forget. They don’t remember what it’s like to be 12 years old.”

See you in the toy aisle!