Fifa, The Sims, Runescape, Call of Duty, Counter Strike, Grand Theft Auto.



Do any of these names ring a bell?



If yes, it’s likely you’ve spent countless hours in front of a computer or mobile screen playing video games.

Don’t get me wrong, video games are a lot of fun.



In moderation, they have tons of benefits:





• New friendships



• Enhanced decision making



• Developed multi-tasking skills



• Improved hand-eye coordination

But there’s something you must know.

There’s a delicate balance between the benefits and repercussions of video games.



Unfortunately, this took me far too long to realize. 



Because from the time I was five until I hit eighteen, I was completely addicted to video games.

Each time I came home from school, I switched on my PlayStation and glued myself to the television until sunset. 



But one day something unexpected happened, my PlayStation flashed a yellow light.



I was confused.



The only thing I’d seen before was a green or red light.

I had to find out what this meant, so I decided to do some research.



Unfortunately, it was not good news.



It was the Yellow Light of Death.



To simplify it for you, the device overheated to the point where the processor could no longer function.
I was devastated.

Now I had a choice to make:



Get a new console or stop playing video games.



As I was about to enter medical school, I chose the latter.

This was one of the hardest decisions I’ve made.



But at the same time, one of the best decisions of my life.

Video games are designed to capture your attention.



You spend hours chasing a reward that doesn’t exist. And even if you fail, you will try again, and again, and again.



The worst part? 



They destroy your most valuable asset: Time.

Fast forward to 2021, my final year of medical school.



Despite not having a console, I kept wasting my time.



But then something clicked.

Could I possibly gamify my own life?

In most games, you have:





• Repeatable tasks

• Enemies to defeat



• Milestones to track



• Progress to be made



• Missions to complete



• Obstacles to overcome

Now think about it.



Don’t these concepts apply to real life as well?

You’re probably thinking:





“Pranav, what’s the game of life?”

Good question.





The game of life is nothing more than playing life with a set of rules to overcome challenges and conquer a specific goal.





Here’s how you can play to win.

Grab some paper and assess your life from four perspectives:

Health. Wealth. Work. Relationships.

From these categories, write down your:



• Mission

• Rewards

• Progress



• Obstacles



• Daily tasks



• Punishments

Let me give you an example.

• Mission: Build a reading habit

• Rewards: Knowledge and skills



• Progress: Read for 30 straight days



• Obstacles: Social media notifications



• Daily tasks: Reading for just 20 minutes



• Punishments: 200 push-ups and 100 sit-ups

Simple and extremely effective.

Adapt your goals to fit your specific needs.



I’ve used this exact principle to:



• Learn a new language

• Improve my daily activity

• Build a reading and writing habit

My focus is now on real-life missions instead of virtual ones.

By gamifying a real-life objective you’ve understood:

• Your main goal

• The actions you need to take



• How you measure your progress

• The rewards and punishments of those actions

Take it from me.

The game of life is far more rewarding than any video game in existence.

Here are a few tips to keep in mind:





• Learn the Kaizen principle

• Focus on your repeatable tasks

• Always keep yourself accountable

• Win the hour and you can win the day

Follow these principles and you won’t touch a video game ever again.

How to play and win the game of life:

• Choose a mission

• Pick a few rewards

• Assess your progress

• Identify the obstacles

• Select your daily tasks

• Accomplish your mission

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Thank you for reading this post. I hope this post gave you a few fresh approaches to tackling writer’s block. If you‘re an entrepreneur curious about writing online, do follow Pranav Gajria on X/Twitter.