We can consider practice in two ways. First, we can consider practice in the sense of a profession or skill, as in a consulting practice, a law practice, or a medical practice. This can refer to a business or a core skill, as in a practice area—for example, "I practice medicine" or "My practice is in the area of urology." Second, we can discuss practice in the sense of an ongoing commitment that involves not only study but also ongoing activity to develop, hone, and maintain the skills that are necessary within a discipline. A practicing surgeon is a person who continuously works not only with her mind but also with her hands. This is the kind of practice we mean when we talk about Zen practice, or basketball practice.
Practice in the two senses mentioned here are both important and mutually interdependent. We think of a practice as something that requires long study and ongoing activity, through which, given enough of these two things, a person may achieve mastery. Mastery of a practice is not something that can be gained simply by studying a book or attending a workshop, and gamestorming is no exception to this rule. Those hoping for a "flavor of the month" to rescue their failing business, or a quick fix, can look elsewhere. But those who approach gamestorming as a practice, worthy of careful study and ongoing skill-building work, will find here a path to rich rewards and personal fulfillment at work.
In this first section of the book, we wanted to focus on the fundamentals of gamestorming and the underlying principles that make it work. We didn't want to simply write a book of recipes for people to follow blindly without understanding them. That would defeat our purpose, which is to encourage a shift in how work is done—from a process-centric model that's about predictability and consistency to a game-centric model that recognizes the complexity and unpredictability of a digital world.
In the next part of the book, we have compiled a list of the best games we know. We hope you will peruse them, try them out in your workplace, and continue to modify and improve them. If you have ideas, comments, or questions you can join the ongoing conversation at http://www.gogamestorm.com.