Have Fun at Work Every Day

Community Organizational culture Respect

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Key Point: If you are not having fun at work most of the time, I have one strong recommendation: QUIT ASAP and find somewhere where you can! So what does having fun at work mean to me? The following may not translate the same way for you, but here is what I believe helps me have fun everyday:

  1. Do not take yourself or your work too seriously! Most of us are not saving lives or the planet. Even if we are, we benefit from being humble and self-deprecating in a balanced way. I enjoy teasing and being teased by others if it is not mean-spirited.
  1. Find the humor in every day things. Point out the quirkiness surrounding you and your team, and enjoy the heck out of it. The team I’m part of pokes fun at the biases we have, language we use, and viewpoints we carry around.
  1. Pull practical jokes. I have punk’d all of my teammates, and most of my direct reports. I could share pranks that would have you doubled over in laughter. We love each other more after. The stories become embellished over time.
  1. Celebrate wins and the idea of togetherness. I remember the first time in the early 90’s when I went to Japan. On Thursday and Friday nights, the streets were filled with happy (often-inebriated) teams, weaving arm-in-arm in the Ginza. I’m not necessarily advocating the incorporation of alcohol, but I am encouraging team celebrations and fun together. Go Bowling! Skeet Shooting! Dragon Boat racing! Any social activity!
  1. Laugh out loud multiple times a day. Every interaction, every meeting, (except with the odd case of a termination), should involve an “LOL.” I’m serous. LOL, many times, every day. Every meeting or interaction has a laugh meter that keeps us real and authentic.

Character Moves:

  1. What is your “laugh out loud factor” everyday at work? If it doesn’t happen at least once per day, ask yourself why.
  1. Embrace the humor in our “EVERY DAY.” Appreciate our personal vulnerability; perhaps even our shortcomings. We all want to be loved, embraced and to be our authentic selves. We are all naturally funny.

LOL everyday in The Triangle,

Lorne

One Millennial View: In the classroom, we all had to be quiet. Curbing disruption makes more sense there. I wonder if that’s why there’s some myth where “fun at work” means you aren’t getting results, or aren’t doing your job properly. C’mon though. We’ve graduated. Even if you’re stuck filling out spread-sheet after spread-sheet, there’s no way that you can’t find the humor in how boring Excel can be with the person at the cube next to you. If people aren’t finding ways to joke at work, it’s likely because they’re afraid to, and that’s a shame.

– Garrett

Edited and published by Garrett Rubis