Having Fun Is Important At Work Having fun might not be something that most of us associate with the workplace, however, fun can definitely make work much more enjoyable and it’s easier than you think to incorporate it into the working day. That, in a waffle cone, is the power of the Levity Effect at work. Discover how to form your first power habit with the 66-Day Challenge Calendar, The Surprisingly Simple Truth Behind Extraordinary Results By Gary Keller and Jay Papasan (Hard Cover), Copyright © 2002-2021 Rellek Publishing Partners, Ltd. Use your imagination and make play a common and useful occurrence in your workplace. One corollary to developing strong bonds of trust is that people are able to also have a great deal of fun at work," Lyman says. Reasons why fun in the workplace is essential: Allowing fun in the work place makes (and keeps) employees happy. The next week they negotiated for a volleyball game on the factory floor as a reward and again hit record production levels. The research also shows that managers who have taught themselves to be funnier are more effective communicators and better salespeople, have more engaged employees, earn a lot more than their peers and are much thinner. However, this idea can also be applied to your small business employees. If the management team has been a stick in the mud about having fun at work it’s time to turn things around. That gap in experience is, surprisingly, one of the largest in the survey. There are a few providers that give you the tools to set up your own internal social networks. Nonetheless, fun matters a lot, and not just because it’s nice. 11. Having open discussions about whether or not we are having fun at work is a path towards wholeness at work. I have to work at it. As Rhett Power points out in his Inc. article “ 10 Reasons Why It Is Important to Create a Happy Workplace,” fun reduces stress. It’s a good thing that researchers don’t automatically prescribe to this notion. It’s important to your stress level and your happiness quotient that you have at least one activity that you do regularly just for fun. Wow. Why it is important to have fun at work . Reconciling Humor with Respect. Stressed-out employees are distracted employees. That last scenario is unfortunately not the norm at most companies, and it’s probably hurting employee performance. Not only is this creating a more relaxing environment, but it also encourages interaction between colleagues, which is proven to boost happiness. Why You Need to Have Fun to Be Successful. And in the long run, all of this can have a positive impact on your organization’s bottom line — and on your career. The Path to ‘Great’ness If it’s your BIG goal to make your office thrive with an engaging culture where people love to come to work, then we’re here to help. What’s better than attracting new talent? - V: 2020.26.0.27-818 -. Correlations to fun on the 57-question survey are all “very high, very positive,” Lyman added. You can also see the exact same thing happen within a work group. Sign up to get job alerts relevant to your skills and experience. And there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that. “It’s absolutely a question companies should be asking themselves, because it is something that happens in great workplaces,” she said. It makes people want to perform well at work and be a contributing member of their team. You can have fun before the work gets done, you can have fun after the work gets done or you can have fun while the work is getting done but I don’t care how authentic your leader is, the fun is going to stop pretty darn quick if the work isn’t getting done. I firmly believe that positive and fun team cultures create success! Having engaging workspaces for … This can … Spruce up that drab cubicle with some pictures of family and friends. As we met with Amy Lyman, chair of the board and cofounder of the Institute, she explained that fun and success go hand in hand. By the third week, when they had earned a trip offsite for ice cream cones, the manager finally got it. Go a step further toward improving motivation by letting them choose the events. Sign up for our ONE Thing Community and enter into a support network of people just like you, and transform the areas of your life that matter most! Sure, except for the fact that a 50 percent increase isn’t exactly insignificant. Do you get a little rush of happiness at the thought of the fun you’re about to have? Work-related stress is on the rise, with a 2018 survey by the Korn Ferry Institute citing a 20% increase in overall employee stress levels over three decades. Retaining your starting lineup. Incorporate an added sweetener like a company provided, in-office lunch break or a beverage hour at 4pm. If people are having fun, they’re going to work harder, stay longer, maintain their composure in a crisis and take better care of the organization. Why Having Fun at Work is Important According to Science, Having Fun at Work is Essential. Studies over the last two decades have revealed when workplaces make fun a factor it creates happier employees that feel more satisfied. Austin Web Design. Humor offers a … Having fun at work might be just as important as having fun in your personal life. Nearly every... Fun At Work breeds loyalty. The Case for Levity Fun in the workplace is good for the bottom line. The manager wrinkled his brow and vetoed the idea. Just taking a walk together in the middle of the day, having an impromptu office party, or enjoying a sweet treat together can be enough to bring coworkers together and make the workday more fun. This will provide temporary relief to work related stress for a while and thus allow employees to enjoy themselves. Why Fun is Important Simply put, fun sells. As humans, we are social creatures that need a little fun to cope with the daily stressors that we face. And while having fun perks like unlimited vacation is not a bad way to stimulate a fun culture, it doesn’t always need to cost you. A ProduKtive™ Product. Getting the work done. And we’re doing a pretty good job at it. Here’s one example. At a recent all-team meeting, each of us went around the room and rated the organization on a scale of 1-10 on how we’re doing at incorporating fun as a core value. An excited Kirt Womack of the Thiokol factory in Utah sprinted into his manager’s office on the first day of spring and asked if the folks on the factory floor could do something fun -- say, head outside and fly paper airplanes -- if they met their quota two hours early. Fun company cultures are the best way to keep your employees and attract new ones. You pull up to your regular parking space at work. 3 reasons why goofing off at work is a good thing. Fun and work sometimes are at opposite poles in some people’s minds, but they don’t have to be. The standard “we work hard and play hard” motto isn’t enough. Employees will work harder knowing that they’ll be rewarded for their efforts and acknowledged for their contributions. Each year, the Great Place to Work Institute asks tens of thousands of employees to rate their experience of workplace factors, including, “This is a fun place to work.” On Fortune’s “100 Best Companies to Work For” list, produced by the Great Place to Work Institute, employees in companies that are denoted as “great” responded overwhelmingly -- an average of 81 percent -- that they are working in a “fun” environment. Create milestones that the whole company can celebrate together. My suggestion is to determine when you work best (morning, afternoon) and then do the tough work … The concept of having fun at work as opposed to taking everything very seriously is a relatively new one in today’s world. In the dark and grey days of the past, people who dared to have fun at work were thought of as time-wasters or nogoodniks sitting around on their keisters and goofing off (people talked funny back in the day). This tale is no big deal, right? The airplanes were launched, laughter rang out and people frolicked (funny word, frolicked). It’s hard to believe that a warm and fuzzy subject such as fun could impact an organization’s success. It’s also proven to improve teamwork, build trusting relationships and increase employee retention. Have lunch catered and keep snacks on hand – well-fed people are happy people. support@the1thing.com. Plan out a whole day of team building games, movies and pet projects. You should know what the supervisor’s initial reaction was to his workers’ hitting the 150 percent production goal by 3 p.m. Rather than connecting the dots and seeing the link between the promise of fun and working harder, he instead commented, “Imagine what you guys could have accomplished if you hadn’t taken two hours off to screw around!” Take the first job that’s right for you. That’s a compelling statistic: Employees at the best companies are also having the best time. "If you are interested in increasing the opportunities for fun across an organization, and people genuinely engage and have fun, then that is an indication to me of a strong workplace culture that people will want to commit to. 2. In addition, fun makes people more creative because it … HR/Benefits Why Workspace is So Critical to Employee's Success An average person spends one-third of their life at work. And it is also true that if you are in business for yourself or work in a small business, fun may not be a priority either. While this tale illustrates the benefits of levity at work, it also underscores the dire need to enlighten management. That, in a waffle cone, is the power of the Levity Effect at work. Too often business owners and managers think that all work and no play is the best way to maximize productivity. On the fun question, the gap is 29 percent. And, all companies should be wondering how to have more fun. Now, a skeptic will ask, “Are successful companies just more fun to be in, since they are winning and profitable, or does fun create success?” It’s the old, “which came first, the chicken or the egg” question. By continuing, you agree to Monster's privacy policy, terms of use and use of cookies. ", Excerpted from The Levity Effect: Why It Pays to Lighten Up, © 2021 Monster Worldwide Take casual Friday beyond getting to wear jeans to work. No matter how cool your co-workers are, or how nice your cubicle is, if you don’t have the right job, you’re not going to have fun. OK, maybe not the last one. Each week, they continued to request fun rewards and turned in astounding production numbers. 15 January, 2017 by Georgia Bobley. Some managers may look at this as wasting a day of work, but in the end the boost in productivity levels will more than make up for it. Data from the organization’s 1 million-person research database reveals that “Great” companies consistently earn significantly higher marks for “fun.” If your employees are having the fun sucked out of them at work, then you shouldn’t be surprised if they don’t give you their best. Having fun at work has a very different meaning today than it used to. All rights reserved. In fact, you’ll probably end up pretty miserable. At the “good” companies -- those that apply for inclusion but do not make the top 100 -- only 62 employees out of 100 say they are having fun. As understandable as it is to do that – don’t do it. An increasing body of research demonstrates that when leaders lighten up and create a fun workplace, there is a significant increase in the level of employee trust, creativity and communication -- leading to lower turnover, higher morale and a stronger bottom line. The manager’s initial ignorance did little to dissuade the workers. Not sure what type of celebration appeals to your employees? Is the stress already starting to build? Is there a little lump of dread growing in your stomach? Now, for those of you like me who believe that fun at work is important here’s something else that’s really important. Decorate the Place. For example, encourage birthday celebrations and minor pranks. A fun culture stems from the energy and the vibe of your workplace, and it’s up to the manager to set the tone for their team. The kind of joyous, playful, break-the-tension fun they engaged in is taking place all around the world in organizations that care about performance, retention and profitability. But to compare, the leverage increase from the good companies up to the best on the friendliness question is just 11.25 percent. Humor is a potent stress buster. Why It's Important to Have Fun at Work. Motivated purely by the opportunity to have a little fun at work, the aviation workers increased their performance dramatically. It also energizes people — and these two factors combined can result in an increase in productivity. Instead of working on Fun at Work Day make it a time for everyone to come in and have fun. At the end of the day it’s all about ONE Thing– the company culture that you want to create, and more importantly, that people want to work in. “In fact, it’s a triple whammy," Kerr explains. " By 3 p.m., they’d surpassed 150 percent. Stress can contribute to lower productivity—but it doesn’t just affect your performance at work. You would see a correlation between fun and reduced turnover, better recruiting, greater camaraderie…all those positive things you see happen in great workplaces. Fun at Work. What’s the first thought that crosses your mind as you shut the car door behind you and make your way to the office? Hobbies and other fun activities provide a fun way to sharpen skills, express your creativity, or just blow off steam. Three reasons having fun at work could be good for your business. It would be rare to be one of Fortune’s "100 Best Companies to Work For" and not score well on the fun question. Kirt persisted, “Well, then, what if we exceed our quota by 50 percent?” Figuring he had nothing to lose, the manager finally gave in. Organizations that nourish creativity and playfulness in employees have less difficulty … Sweeten the pot with an award for the winner(s), and people will really enjoy coming to work. Workplace stress... Increase in … Coming up with weekly or monthly challenges that employees can participate in is a fun motivator. Anytime an employee needs a little comedic relief they can hop on to see the latest posts. "In other words, when companies make the leap from good to great, they must start addressing sophisticated trust issues. More Likely To Have Fun At Work. Yet, here are the Top 7 Benefits I hear about why having fun at work is so crucial these days: 1. Fun is an important part of life, and work makes up around half of our waking life. Jul 3, 2019 10:00 AM. Having fun at work is proven to have substantial effects on workplace productivity. Lyman explained to us that as a company moves on its journey from being lousy to good to great, they must first address basic issues such as physical safety and even friendliness. Introducing small ways to create fun in the workplace is the ultimate win-win. But the remarkable case for levity at work is growing, with the most convincing numbers culled from more than a decade of research by the Great Place to Work Institute. Just Kidding? Incorporating fun into the office is a great way to harness enthusiasm amongst staff, integrate new people into your team, and to develop a positive team culture. Reducing stress increases productivity. As understandable as it is to do what they do best every day repeat., in a waffle cone, is the power of the fun,... Which is proven to have fun question, the manager wrinkled his brow and the. 'S privacy policy, terms of use and use of cookies affect your performance at work good... 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