Work and Play Should Coexist: Transform Your Workplace

Written by Kara Stewart Fortier

In this last episode of 2020, Rona Lewis rounds out our Playful Minds Project “trilogy”. We’ve heard from both co-founders about the inspiration behind Playful Minds Project and how they’re working to address gender and the female mental load. Then we heard from Jessica Brustad and her focus on mental health in play sessions they offer for individuals. Now this week, Rona Lewis explains their work with businesses to improve mental health in the workplace.

On Playful Mind Project’s website, they cite research reported in Forbes indicating that 75% of U.S. workers have struggled at work due to anxiety caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and other recent world events. In addition, nearly all of the respondents said that it was important that companies prioritize workers’ mental health.

So that’s what Rona helps businesses do.

Meet Rona Lewis, Co-Founder and CEO of Playful Minds Project

As a former C-level advertising sales exec, Rona is a champion of the inner child! She is a play instigator and creativity coach. She loves to help change individuals as well as corporations to ignite ideas and explode productivity and is a leading expert in play for company employees.

Rona doesn’t believe in work/life balance. Work is part of life! So how do you balance it all? It’s about taking time to make time work for you. And above all, having an attitude of play that makes life an adventure, not a responsibility.

Rona’s first career was in advertising sales, where her last position was as VP of Sales for a national media rep firm. She then changed careers and became a fitness and lifestyle coach for corporations, professional women and businessmen – add to that, certifications as a creativity coach and her business built itself! Her background includes a degree in Advertising with a minor in Phys. Ed. from Penn State University, along with certifications from various fitness organizations and cooking schools. Her play and creativity prowess was helped along by schools such as University of Minnesota and The State University of New York. Trust me–she knows her stuff!!

As an expert, she’s been a guest on TV and radio shows from San Francisco to New York. Her articles have been featured in Corporate Wellness Magazine, Town and Country Magazine, New York’s Pierless Magazine and more.