21 Nov

5 More Ways To Make Work A Jolly Place

Posted in Synergy Suggestions on 21.11.14 by John Meloche

Happy office employees having fun at work in an office chair raceIn yesterday’s blog, we revisited the concept of having fun in the workplace. Creating a fun work environment is generally an all-around good idea. It helps for your employees to enjoy coming in each day and that makes them want to work that much harder. It then helps for your customers to recognize your brand as an upbeat and fun place to visit and do business with. Is there a downside to making work fun?

In some cases, things may get out of hand. That’s why it’s very important to lay down some ground rules so that your staff knows what is and what is not acceptable. After all, you don’t want people to think that your office is a place where “play time” is appropriate. At the same time, you don’t want the members of your staff to feel that each and every day on the job is a dreary and stressful one.

So what to do? Yesterday, we began looking at a great list of ideas from Jody Urquhart on AGCareers.com. She writes that lightening up your business meetings with playful activities and sharing personal favourites with your staff are great ways to lighten the mood and cheer things up at work. In today’s blog, we’ll conclude our look at Urquhart’s list in hopes that it will help for your staff to have their most joyous holiday season on the job yet! Here are five more tips.

1. Gather your co-workers for the “Joy of Work” hour. “Everyone must talk about something good at work,” explains Urquhart, “Take turns telling stories about the things that make work a joy. Each person should contribute ideas on how to make work more fun.” This is a great idea because it encourages feedback from your staff. After all, ensuring that they are enjoying themselves means listening to what they enjoy!

2. Have a fun recognition program. It’s always a good idea to recognize the contributions of your staff members. This should be a year-round practice. As Urquhart writes, “fun is not a reward for performance, but can be a way to encourage employees to perform. For example, you could create ‘games’ out of productive activity…who can motivate the most patients in a hospital to smile and say something funny to the head nurse. Playful and goal-oriented fun is best.”

3. Respond to fun when it happens. Sometimes, things just happen spontaneously. Go with it. Allowing your staff members the freedom to be themselves will go a long way in making them the motivated, hard-working team that you want for your business. “Funny things occur all the time,” Urquhart writes, “but if you are obsessed with left-brain analytical thought, you might find it hard to stop and respond. Natural spontaneous humour is a blessing.”

4. Commit to being fun and it will change your approach to work. Is being fun hard for you? Don’t worry. It doesn’t come easy to everyone. That doesn’t mean that you don’t know how to enjoy yourself. It simply means that – like all good business owners – your focus may be on the success of your business. “Start slowly with a few activities and communicate your desire to create a more relaxed workplace,” Urquhart advises, “Don’t expect things to turn around overnight.”

5. Encourage staff to leave work behind at the end of the day. “Employees shouldn’t be so consumed with work that it affects their family life and leisure activities,” says Urquhart, “Find fun ways for employees to ‘unload’ at the end of the day or week. Create a ritual like writing a ‘to do’ list and posting it on the board. By doing this, you commit to not thinking about the things on the list until the next day.”

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