Monopoly

What do you think of when I mention the word monopoly? A long board game, family fights, cheating, having to be the banker, getting out of jail… some how passing go, working out how to buy Mayfair…

I feel it is timely to write about a game that truly leaves its mark on family life generationally. I have fond memories of playing monopoly on family holidays growing up, even though the games often ended in tears. My Dad never showed any mercy and would win every game. My brother and I would try to conjure up ways to potentially beat him, but he always seemed to be one step ahead.

Now with my own family, other than to highlight my thankfulness for the shorter version of the game, we are making our own memories. Just to note: I am now Mrs Competitive who is more than happy to wipe the board every time and claim to be the winner… That aside, it is interesting to see the family dynamics play out. One child, must be the banker and real estate agent at the same time, he will also be the one to say, you don’t have much money left can I give you some. He is the risk adverse player and one who invests carefully and thoughtfully. Another child, just plays her own game, not paying attention to what anyone else if doing, she is focused on her property and available cash. Neither of them, are yet to pick up on my ruthless plan that ensures I win every time.

My thought is, how often do we spend time, just watching and thinking about the people in our life – whether family, friends or work colleges? Do we observe them, do we understand who they are ? How they are treated and treat others? Do we even want to know? I would argue we should – then we know how they tick and how we can best be a support to them when the need arises. For example, I know when one of my work mates is stressed, she loves to tell everyone she is stressed. That is my cue, to sit with her and work out what the next hour / day/ week needs to look like to minimise the stress and focus on outcomes. For me, this is not hard, but it wouldn’t have happened if I didn’t pick up on her behaviour when she is stressed.

This goes for my kids also. One of my kids, often has a shower to clear their head and reset. I’ve had to say to them, you don’t need to ask to have a shower, just do it. I know, if the shower is on at an odd time of day, the reset button is being pushed.

It may be time, if you haven’t had a family game of monopoly for a while, to play together. Use it to observe the dynamics and how well your family team works together. It may highlight some areas to work on, it may also, make you smile at how your family team works together.