Fun at work brings positive productivity

Many positive results come from playing. Productivity is increased when boring job duties become competitive games that reflect achievement. Creative, out-of-the-box thinking becomes the norm during the problem-solving process. Employee morale and retention rates increase.

Happier, more productive associates will provide better customer service because they will sincerely and naturally strive to build positive relationships with clients. Customers, in turn, will talk to the same staff all the time and feel secure in the knowledge that they are being taken care of personally and consistently. Clients will feel the energy and personal commitment given to their accounts, which will result in increased customer satisfaction and retention rates.

Fun as a core value

Create a company culture that incorporates fun as one of the core values. Stimulate and promote lightening up among staff members. Encourage naturally playful moments, such as harmless practical jokes and spontaneous outbursts of singing.

Have each team member generate a list of the pleasurable people and things that make them feel happy, and promote a review of the list when spirits are low.

Have a toy mascot that is given to an individual who is having an especially challenging day. For example, if the name of your business is Playfair Inc., a Rockem’ Sockem’ Robot game could be used.

Suggest employees bring toys to work that would help them during stressful times. For example, keep a fairy wand handy. If someone calls and begins creating stress, the employee can wave his wand over the phone and pretend the irate caller has disappeared, despite the reality that the caller is still there and must be professionally handled.

Goofing off on the clock

Organized goofing around has merit, so create races in office chairs with wheels or initiate marshmallow fights. Consider having a pet in the building. It is hard to be stressed while petting a cat, playing fetch with a dog or talking to a parakeet.

Communicate information in amusing and memorable fashions. Allow jokes to be written at the bottom of e-mails. For more creative workers, let them turn an e-mail message into a poem. Begin a Frisbee memo day during which written messages may be delivered via Frisbee.

Create voice mail messages from the standpoint of and in the trademark voice of a famous person, such as Mae West. The message could say, “Leave a message at the tone, or better yet, why don’t you come up and see me sometime?”

Give associates permission to have alter-ego names on office doors and internal stationery. For example, the vice president of information technology may be a budding blues guitarist. His dream is to play on stage under the name of Teddy Earl. Allow him to write his stage name on a picture of a guitar and tape it to his door or on the wall of his office. Encourage team members to buy him any guitar playing teddy bears that they come across while shopping. Maintain a company fund to reimburse anyone who might experience a financial hardship by purchasing the item.

A fun workplace is becoming the newest business trend. Companies should try to adjust to the change.

Lynne Haggerman is president/owner of Haggerman & Associates, a firm specializing in management training, retained search, outplacement and human resource consulting. She can be reached at lynne@haggermanand

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