Your office doesn’t have to be a boring, dreary place just because it’s an office! Stave off the dullness of being stuck inside from 9 to 5 by injecting a little fun into your everyday workplace. Studies show that having a little fun at work can actually increase employee productivity. So loosen your tie, stop being so serious all the time, and learn to live a little. Below you’ll find a couple of easy ways to bring back the smiles in your office and get some work done while doing it.
Have a Theme Day
Forget Casual Friday, end your hectic work week with a fun and exciting theme day. Having a theme day is an easy way to visibly boost the morale of your employees and create a space for laughter all day long. If you can’t think of any ideas for theme days, have your office come up with some and vote for the ones they like the best. Make sure you create some guidelines for what kind of attire is still considered office appropriate and then let your employees’ creativity go wild. Some fun theme day ideas could include dress like your favorite superhero, remember the 80s day, or come to work in your pajamas!
Decorate Fun Colors
A simple way to spice up your office is to bring in some fun decorations. This could be anything from cat shaped sticky notes, funny posters, or colorful wallpaper. If you’re feeling daring, you could even give your old drab office walls a new paint job! Getting your employees in on the decorating fun is a great way to encourage engagement and community building. Let them decorate their personal space and the office with photos, knick-knacks and other fun decorations.
Take a Long Lunch Away From Your Everyday Workplace
If you’re looking to build a stronger community and forge deeper relationships amongst your team, setting aside one day a month where everyone can take a long lunch together may be just the trick. Treat your team to a matinee movie, a trip to the local Chinese buffet, or a fun bowling outing. The time away from the office during the middle of the day will be much appreciated by everyone and can make work that much more bearable when you get back.
Get in Touch With Your Inner Child
Playing is something we used to do every day as kids, so there’s no reason why we should stop as adults! Incorporating a little play into your everyday office culture can encourage employees to have fun and be more creative. Simple ways you can do this is to bring in a couple fun toys to the office like nerf guns, foam footballs and bouncing exercise balls. This way if an employee gets bored, instead of watching the clock with anticipation to go home they can take a break and have some fun. Playing in the workplace can also strengthen team relationships and make employees excited to go into the office every morning.
For more easy ways to get your office going, check out our blog post Ways to Energize Employees with More Than Just Coffee.