Who said work couldn’t be fun? It turns out that the more fun you have at work the more likely you are to feel more productive, motivated and less likely to be absent.
Our wellbeing is so important to everything we do in our lives. The more we can benefit from being in a positive environment at work the better it will be for ourselves as well as our employer.
But nobody said it was going to be easy to achieve this. A balance has to be struck and introducing fun activities at work is not without its challenges.
For example does your organisation encourage fun in the workplace or does it completely rule out any frivolity as unprofessional and strictly prohibited? If the culture does not support a fun mentality in the workplace then this will not permeate through the workforce. Leaders and senior management must be engaged in this themselves for it to truly work and have a positive effect.
Not only this but it is a common feature that Company’s employ a diverse range of employees with lots of different interests. In addition the age span across the workforce could be anything between sixteen and seventy plus. It is likely that the younger generation of workers will have a very different idea of what fun is than those who are more mature.
However this should not stop organisations from adopting a fun culture. There are always ways to find a happy balance amongst employees without it being forced upon them. In fact lots of employees’ are more than happy to arrange their own activities and suggest ways of introducing some fun into the workplace.
Whatever it is employees’ should be encouraged to come forward with ideas about what activities could be introduced.
Having a ‘fun zone’ could be an option. When employees’ take a work break they could go to this area and chill-out with other colleagues. If there are games and activities such as a pool table for example then this could be a way of integrating a fun environment in the workplace.
A way to energise staff, which is becoming more popular is having walking meetings, whereby you literally have a meeting with a colleague whilst walking. Having colouring stations where people can stand and colour in pictures for a few minutes is another emerging activity that some organisations are adopting. By standing as well as engaging in something fun and different you are also improving fitness levels and reducing fatigue. A win win for everyone!
Going somewhere off site away from the office is another way to have some fun and engage in an activity away from the place of work. This in itself can work wonders for a person’s psychology and wellbeing. Whether it be a team building event or riding scooters in the car park there are an array of options available.
Just think how fired up and energised your employees’ would feel if they worked in a Company that encouraged some time out from work. Their motivation would be significantly increased and they would literally be ready to go again when they got back to doing the job in hand.
It is also recognised that when at work employees’ should be working and not just on a jolly but having the right balance will improve results in performance amongst employees. In fact figures gathered following a survey of 2000 workers across the UK, completed by Robertson Cooper show that 62% of employees who engaged in some form of fun activities at work did not have any time off work due to sickness over the last 3 months.
Furthermore 55% of employees said that they felt more creative when they had participated in some form of fun at work as opposed to 33% who had not.
It is clear that if fun can be had in the work place and done in a way that does not feel contrived or forced it can be a powerful ally amongst employees and benefit the Company’s performance overall.
So if you are an employer who is thinking about introducing some fun activities at work then make a start today. Think about the easy wins and what you could do to start encouraging some fun in your workplace. How can you get your employees’ to engage with this idea? Give it a go and please do share your results with us.
Thank you for reading this article and remember to work and play hard. Have fun!
Donna Fairbrother
Director
The Online HR People
01509 833126
