GUEST BLOGGER: Karen Callahan, Program Coordinator, ActionCOACH Foundation
Have you ever noticed how you always look forward to being with certain people? It’s usually because you feel comfortable with them, and they are just fun to be around. In life, that translates into more friends and better relationships. In business, it means more clients and greater access to key figures.
A good sense of humor and the ability to have fun may be an intangible, but it’s an extremely valuable one. In fact, every time women are polled on what they want most in a man, the #1 answer is a good sense of humor. And it doesn’t stop there.
In this blogpost in Forbes, play was shown to improve workforce productivity by 20%. According to the article, play helps foster creativity and innovation. Humor typically lends an element of surprise, getting us to think out of the box, “combining ideas in new ways and embracing the unexpected to build something that hasn’t been done before.” Game playing can help unite teams toward a common goal with established rules and boundaries in an environment where everyone is equal.
The element of fun in the workplace helps break down the walls between people so they feel more comfortable expressing themselves honestly; this can often be the difference between solving a problem and never hearing that one exists. It also allows employees to bring their full selves to the office. As Forbes concludes, “Through play, we have a new lens on those around us—what entertains them, what motivates them and what we have in common with them.”
