From the Element of Play

Articles & Reflections

Thoughts, tools and practical reflections from Jodi Salmond on adult play, burnout recovery, playful leadership, self-connection, nervous system reset, creativity, nature connection and feeling more like yourself again.

These articles are part of The Element of Play, Jodi Salmond's work exploring how play, movement, nature connection, creativity and joy can support burnout recovery, self-leadership and more human ways of living and leading.

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What Is Play-Based Leadership? A Human-Centred Approach to Burnout Prevention

Leadership + Workplace Wellbeing

What Is Play-Based Leadership?

Why effective leaders are learning to lead with curiosity, lightness, and genuine human connection.

Jodi Salmond · 18 May 2026 · 11 min read

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Why Your Brain Needs Play to Think Straight

Play + Neuroscience

Why Your Brain Needs Play to Think Straight

The science is simpler than you think, and so is the fix.

Jodi Salmond · 10 May 2026 · 3 min read

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What Survival Mode Really Feels Like: And How to Start Softening It

Survival Mode + Aliveness

What Survival Mode Really Feels Like

When you have been coping for so long that tension starts to feel normal, survival mode can be hard to recognise. Here is how to notice it and gently begin to soften it.

Jodi Salmond · 28 Apr 2026 · 4 min read

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Feeling exhausted, flat and far from yourself? The Burnout Recovery Reset is a simple, play-based reset delivered free to your inbox.

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P.L.A.Y.
Tony Tenaglier balancing on one leg while holding his other leg extended upward, inside the New Hampshire Power Yoga studio

Play + Work

I am very good at living in “when this is done” mode.

When this project is finished, things will calm down. When the next deadline passes, I will have more space. When the event is over, I will rest. When the book is launched, I will celebrate. When I get through this week, I will finally catch up.

Tony Tenaglier · 20 Oct 2026 · 6 min read

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Domenic Fusca smiling broadly with his hand raised in a rock and roll gesture in front of a colourful abstract mural

Play + Connection

Curiosity Is a Form of Connection

What happens when familiarity replaces curiosity? A reflection on connection, safety and asking one more question, with Domenic Fusca.

Domenic Fusca · 13 Oct 2026 · 6 min read

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Jen Guyton looking through a camera lens inside a helicopter over a lush green landscape

Play + Purpose

Rewilding Yourself Back to Who You Are

What happens when you spend years chasing a goal, finally achieve it, and realise it has not given you what you thought it would?

Jen Guyton · 6 Oct 2026 · 8 min read

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Ryan Griffin smiling in a white t-shirt against a muted green backdrop

Play + Body Signals

Your Body Knows Before You Do

A conversation with Ryan Griffin about high performance, body signals, sustainable productivity and why your body usually knows before you do.

Ryan Griffin · 29 Sep 2026 · 7 min read

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Jodi Salmond and Narelle Walsh travelling together in the back of a tuk tuk in the Philippines

Play + Reinvention

Outgrowing the Shell

Reflections from my conversation with Narelle Walsh about quitting well, growing sideways, and what it means to be between versions of yourself.

Narelle Walsh · 21 Sep 2026 · 10 min read

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Jodi Salmond and Ayva Rose dressed as grannies performing together in a burlesque show

Confidence + Costume

Confidence Isn't a Mask. It's Something You Put On to Become More Yourself.

A conversation with photographer, dancer and self-described "unprofessional professional" Ayva Rose taught me that the wig gets you there faster than the pep talk does.

Ayva Rose · 21 Sep 2026 · 6 min read

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Jodi Salmond and Pretzel Morar together at PranaFest

Play + Identity

Are You Playing Your Own Game?

Whose scoreboard are you using? A reflection on identity, branding, sport, coaching and playing your own game, with Pretzel Morar.

Pretzel Morar · 6 Sep 2026 · 6 min read

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Rochelle Callard celebrating with fellow 2024 Sunshine Coast Business Women's Network award winners, putting fun in the calendar.

Play + Environment

What Are You Setting Yourself Up For?

What if the thing standing between you and play isn't a lack of motivation, but friction? A reflection on setting yourself up for the life you actually want, with Rochelle Callard.

Rochelle Callard · 29 Aug 2026 · 5 min read

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Portrait of Andrew Boniface, guest on The Element of Play podcast Episode 7.

Play + Rest

When Rest Still Feels Empty

What happens when high performance becomes your default mode, and rest starts to feel harder than pushing through? A reflection on stopping, rest and the gaps we keep filling.

Andrew Boniface · 27 Aug 2026 · 3 min read

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What If An Empty Hour Isn't Wasted, But An Investment?

Play + Culture

What If An Empty Hour Isn't Wasted, But An Investment?

What Ernest Tan taught me about informing versus forming, and why the hour nobody scheduled might be doing more work than any of the hours we did.

Ernest Tan · 15 Aug 2026 · 4 min read

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The Many-Thinged Thing

Play + Curiosity

The Many-Thinged Thing

What happens when we stop trying to have everything figured out and get a little more curious instead? A reflection on curiosity, risk and real connection, with Gabriella Salmon.

Gabriella Salmon · 12 Aug 2026 · 6 min read

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Portrait of Jeremy Greening, guest on The Element of Play podcast Episode 4.

Play + Grief

What If Joy Isn't the Opposite of Grief?

Joy does not replace grief. What Jeremy Greening taught me about carrying hard things without letting them become the only thing you carry.

Jeremy Greening · 3 Aug 2026 · 9 min read

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