While my penchant is for systemic change and not quick fixes, occasionally you just need a little somethin’ somethin’ to rally the team and lift their spirits. Perhaps you’re stuck in a rut or it’s been a rough week – regardless, leverage the power of music, story and humor to add some sparkle to your workplace.
Music is probably the easiest – consider some of these options:
- A 3-minute de-stress dance fest to music that would jive with your team
- Create an impromptu conga line throughout the office
- Sway or rock out to a song everyone can sing to (We are the Champions by Queen is a fun option along with Don’t Stop Believing by Journey or I Will Survive by Gloria Gaynor…)
- Bring in the cupid shuffle for a short jaunt of line-dancing
- Get CRAZY and have everyone enjoy the goofy lightheartedness of the chicken dance
Story:
- Tell one of your organization’s stories from the canon – how it got started, biggest guffaw, biggest success, most challenging time and how you came through it
- Have impromptu story time where team members take turns sharing one of the most interesting moments from their life – perhaps most inspiring or most embarrassing
- If it’s been a rough week – consider a brown bag lunch gathering on Friday and do your own internal version of “The Moth” (themoth.org) – where team members take turns telling 3-5 minute stories from their life/work on a certain topic
- Literally you can do one of those story games where someone starts off the story and it gets passed around a circle
Humor:
- I personally swear by bad clean jokes
- Send an e-mail with the subject line “When you need a 3-minute amusing brain break” and share a tasteful short video or content that made you laugh out loud – here’s one of my go-to favorites
- As long as it’s not offensive or snarky, on the fly humor is almost always welcomed – even if it lands flat you made an effort to bring a smile. Of course, be thoughtful of your timing.
- Play a round of grab the finger or try one of these one-minute games
When we’re feeling “meh” or struggling we’re likely taking ourselves too seriously – music, story and humor help us let loose a little, and reduce tension and stress while increasing connection, creativity and morale.
Join the Culture Tips Newsletter!
Leave theory behind and start taking action, today.
With Culture Works in your hands you’ll know exactly how, and what to do to manage your workplace culture.
No other workplace culture book empowers you to take on workplace challenges like the researched and proven 8 Critical Factors found in Culture Works.
