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| Humor at Work |
ISSUE 541 - June 4, 2014 |
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A Salute to Silliness
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Today we pay homage to the fine art of silliness, because yes, it's official Salute to Silliness Day. Which isn't as silly as it may sound, considering the stress-busting, creativity-boosting and team building benefits of being a little silly at work from time to time. Here are some of the sillier ways workplaces are putting humor to work:
- Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream has held meetings where everyone dons Grouch Marx glasses every time someone uses the word "serious".
- Meeting participants at the St. Louis National Health Systems Office sometimes blow bubbles at the start of a meeting to loosen everyone up.
- Human Dynamics has a 3:00 p.m. ritual where everyone laughs while spinning in their chair for 30 seconds.
- Some workplaces have played a little "Stealth Disco" (not to be confused, Alex, with "Stealth Twerking") wherein someone videos a conversation between two or more colleagues while a person silently disco dances in the background. It's like a photo bomb, only with disco!
- One of my clients uses Silly String at their meetings and launches a Silly String attack whenever someone violates a meeting rule, such as using an overused buzzword or going over their allotted time to speak.
- And last but not least, still one of my favorite traditions to add a bit of silliness to your day: Third Person Thursday, where everyone refers to themselves in the third person. Mike truly loves that idea.
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Mike's Fun at Work Tip |
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The Silly Booth is an automated photo booth that helps you add a bit of silliness to your meeting or conference events. The booth comes with props and goofy costume parts for awesomely silly team photos, or you can add your own props and costumes.
Now just because you don't have a silly booth near you doesn't mean you can't get in on the act - hold a contest for the silliest team photo in your workplace and create an official wall of silliness to display the photos. |
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Quote of the Week |
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"In my experience, people who can do
silly things for laughs alone and still maintain their workload and
responsibilities are among the most valuable and productive employees in an
organization." Rick George, former
CEO of Suncor |
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It's a Silly World |
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The Silliest Inventions of the 20th Century features some rather unusual ideas, including a portable sauna, baby cage, venetian blind sunglasses, and a motorized surf board (okay, so now you have to check it out). So what would get your vote as the silliest invention of all time? | |
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Cost Savings to Book Mike
Last chance! A whopping 50% discount to book Mike in Edmonton, on this day only, Wednesday, June 25th!
And the "Need to see my dear old Mom!" discount is still on. Discounts for presentations this August in Kelowna or Penticton, B.C.
As I stress in my creativity workshops, often the most brilliant innovations emerge out of a silly seed of an idea. So as a counterpoint to the silliest inventions of all time, check out 10 Silly Inventions That Became Wildly Famous | | |
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Copyright © 2014 Humor at Work. All Rights Reserved.
mike@mikekerr.com
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