A final reflection inspired by Bruce Lund

As I was finishing this book, something unexpected happened.

Bruce Lund, one of the most remarkable toy inventors I have known, contacted me to express his interest in the project. I invited him to share a few thoughts about creativity and where great toy ideas come from.

His response made me think about something I had perhaps understood throughout my career, but had never expressed quite so clearly.

The best toy inventors have something extraordinary in common with children: they have never forgotten how to play.

Bruce explained that when he sits down with someone to develop a new idea, he follows a simple principle: give your imagination wings.

Say whatever comes into your mind. Don’t wait until an idea is perfect. Don’t worry if it sounds ridiculous. Sometimes the most absurd suggestion becomes the beginning of something wonderful.

And suddenly, I realized that this is exactly how children play.

Watch two children inventing a game.

One says, “Let’s pretend this sofa is a spaceship.”

The other replies, “And the floor is made of lava!”

“Then we need a bridge!”

“No, a flying car!”

Within minutes, an entire universe has appeared where, moments earlier, there was only a sofa and a carpet.

Neither child stops to question whether the idea is realistic. Neither demands a business plan, a feasibility study, or proof that the game will succeed.

They simply imagine, listen, respond, and build upon each other’s ideas.

And the game becomes better with every contribution.

Bruce describes his creative sessions as a game of catch between two people. One throws an idea; the other catches it and throws something back. If either becomes distracted, the game loses its rhythm. If one stops responding, the exchange comes to an end.

Isn’t that precisely what children do when they play together?

They are not merely exchanging words. They are building a shared imaginary world, one idea at a time.

Bruce also explains that some of his most successful inventions emerged from experimenting with materials, mechanisms, and unexpected combinations.

One of his creations, Doggie Doo, began with a dough-like substance, a bellows, and a piece of transparent tubing. The sound produced by that experiment suggested the toy itself.

What was he doing?

Playing.

Just as a child might combine objects without knowing what will happen, Bruce was exploring possibilities, discovering unexpected effects, and allowing curiosity to guide him.

The difference is that Bruce had the experience, technical knowledge, and determination to transform those discoveries into products.

But the creative impulse was fundamentally the same.

And perhaps this is something that adults, particularly those of us who work in business, should remember more often.

Children are not afraid of unfinished ideas.

They do not need every suggestion to be sensible.

They are willing to change the rules halfway through a game if someone proposes something more exciting.

They experiment without knowing the outcome.

They imagine things that do not exist.

And, above all, they find pleasure in the process itself.

As we grow older, we gradually learn to become more cautious. We measure risks, calculate costs, anticipate objections, and worry about failure.

All these abilities are necessary. They help us turn ideas into viable products and sustainable businesses.

But sometimes, in becoming better at evaluating ideas, we become worse at imagining them.

Bruce’s reflections reminded me that imagination and execution are two different things. First, we must allow ourselves to dream without restrictions. Then we can apply our knowledge and experience to make those dreams possible.

Perhaps the greatest inventors are not those who have abandoned their childhood imagination in favor of adult expertise.

Perhaps they are those who have managed to preserve the first while acquiring the second.

Throughout this book, I have explored how toys are conceived, developed, marketed, distributed, and transformed into successful brands. I have reflected on the changing relationship between children and their parents, the evolution of consumer behavior, and the extraordinary businesses built around the simple human desire to play.

But as I reach these final pages, Bruce’s contribution brings me back to the very beginning.

Before there is a product, there is an idea.

Before there is a brand, there is an experience.

And before there is an industry, there is a child playing.

We spend our professional lives trying to understand children. Perhaps we should also spend more time learning from them.

Because children do not play to become inventors, entrepreneurs, or business leaders.

They play because playing makes them happy.

And in doing so, they develop precisely the abilities that make imagination, innovation, and human progress possible.

After more than thirty-five years selling toys, I have come to understand that our industry has a responsibility far greater than creating successful products.

We have the privilege of helping children explore their imagination, discover possibilities, share experiences, and build memories that may accompany them for the rest of their lives.

And perhaps the greatest lesson I have learned is that play is not simply something we do during childhood.

It is something worth carrying with us throughout our lives.

Bruce Lund never stopped playing.

And perhaps that is why he never stopped inventing.

The best way to keep creating dreams is never to forget how to play.