Why so Serious? 10 Easy Ways to Inject More Fun into the Workplace
01/10/12
Although most of us look forward to catching our breath and getting back to normal after the action-packed holiday season, the stretch of long, quiet days in late winter can be a bit of a drag. You might not be looking at another paid holiday until Memorial Day, and the excitement of the holidays are all but a distant memory.
So how do you handle the draught that befalls many workplaces this time of year – and keep employees from nodding off from boredom? A little levity and lighthearted fun are in order! January 28 is Fun at Work Day, the perfect place to start. Show your employees that whimsy in the workplace is not only possible but preferred with these ideas:
1) Hand out small tokens of praise. Fill a tacklebox with simple recognition items and cast out the appropriate item to a deserving colleague at your next meeting or in a one-on-one chat, such as a Gumby for someone who has shown flexibility, a pair of inexpensive sunglasses for a bright idea or an iridescent rubber ball for someone who has bounced back from a challenge.
2) Cater to their cravings. Food has a magical way of bringing employees together and putting them in better spirits. Once or twice a month, bring in a bag of bagels at breakfast, organize a potluck luncheon, or hold a “best cookie” bake-off. For a healthier twist, consider introducing a new fruit (kiwi, pomegranate, loganberry) at regular department meetings.
3) Fun with fashion. Casual Friday is overplayed, as is wearing jeans and T-shirts once a week. Instead, schedule theme days that allow employees to dig deeper in their closets and express themselves through their attire, such as “Favorite Team Jersey Day,” “Hawaiian Shirt Day,” or “Silly Hat Day.”
4) Recess for adults. If the weather permits, grab some Frisbees, footballs or beach balls and get outside for a 15-20-minute break with your team. Keep the mood light, and encourage everyone to flex their muscles and enjoy the fresh air.
5) Hold a trivia contest. Sharing a common history helps build loyalty. Create a multiple-choice trivia contest to communicate the origins (and idiosyncrasies) of your business with employees in a lighthearted way. Give simple, affordable prizes to the winners with the most correct answers.
6) Belt out the tunes. Why not bring a karaoke machine to the office and stage “American Idol” contests at lunchtime? The next Kelly Clarkson or David Cook might be right down the hall. To really stir things up, have management perform their favorite songs and let employees be the judges.
7) Give in to game time. Select some classic board games (checkers, dominoes, Scrabble) and toys (yo-yos, Slinky, Etch A Sketch) to put in the break room. The items will not only bring back fond memories, but they’ll also provide a much-needed diversion during breaktime.
8) Answer to alternative job titles. In addition to their formal job titles that appear on business cards, let employees brainstorm secondary titles to use among their peers. The more unusual the title, the better, such as “Innovation Maven, “Revenue Raiser,” “Idea Launcher,” “Conceptologist” and “Mastermind of Possibilities.”
9) Here comes the sun. A simple way to quickly improve the mood around the office is to allow more natural light to flow through windows. Consider disassembling cubicles and trying new configurations to give more employees a window view.
10) Build a humor bulletin board. Encourage employees to contribute cartoons, jokes and photos that others will enjoy. Assign someone to monitor the items for appropriateness, and clear out the board every month or so to make room for new items.
11) A picture-perfect idea. Designate a space to put up photos of the management team when they were children. Or take silly photos of each team member (wearing a cape or an outrageous hat, for example) and create a photo wall in their work area.
Make Fun the Icing on the Cake
Injecting more fun into the workplace is certainly a worthwhile endeavor, but it’s important to consider the sensitivities of certain activities. Striking a balance is important, too. Employees can be competent and professional and still show a sense of humor.
As a San Francisco business owner states in the book, 301 Ways to Have Fun at Work:
“Perhaps the biggest factor in creating fun in the workplace is organization. If everybody is always overworked or behind, they will be stressed out. I think management needs to set realistic production goals and provide competent direction, as well as the resources to support achievement of the goals. Given this structure, even the most challenging work can be fun and not stressful.”