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Time for Fun and Games in the Office?

Adam Groff

August 07, 2013

All work and no play is no way to start the workday, so why not try and incorporate a little fun into your corporate environment?

Office antics aren’t necessarily a bad thing when the end goal is reducing employee stress by taking some of the edge off work.

Here are five ways to have a little fun in the office without sacrificing too much professionalism.

1. The Pursuit of Office Trivia

What better way to stay entertained during downtime and interact with others in the office than with trivia. Sports, entertainment, and general knowledge questions will keep your office buzzing with the spirit of competition.

Split the office up into department teams or make it a single player game, either way it’s guaranteed to be more entertaining than smooth jazz.

Try emailing questions every morning and entice your employees with prizes like gift cards or a lunch on the house (or on the office for that matter).

2. Scavenger Hunts for Business

Do you remember how much fun scavenger hunts used to be when you were a kid? Well, bring out the kid in all your employees with office-wide scavenger hunts. It’ll get your employees up and moving without them having to leave the office.

Employees can take turns hiding objects and the employee that finds all the objects on the list first gets to run the next hunt. It’s office fun for all departments.

3. Casual Friday with a Theme

If jeans and tennis shoes are becoming casual Friday commonplace, why not get a little creative with weekly themes. It doesn’t necessarily have to be a costume party, but rather a clothing competition.

Themes like “wear your dorkiest t-shirt” and “world’s worst sweater” are great ways to make employees eager to get to work to see if they’ve outdone the office. And, considering laughter is the best medicine, themed casual Fridays are perfect for breaking workplace tension.

4. Board Games in the Break Room

Make the break room the ultimate place to unwind and forget about the issues surrounding work by adding a few board games. Board games like Jenga and checkers don’t eat up a lot of time, but they do provide a needed distraction.

As for ongoing break room fun, puzzles are a great “pick-up where you left off” mind relaxing activity. And, for those employees who find board games and puzzles boring, a magnetic dartboard or mini basketball hoop are entertaining alternatives.

5. Potluck Lunch Break

There’s nothing worse than getting stuck in lunch hour traffic, but eating at the office isn’t that great either. So, why not start an office tradition with potluck lunches once a week.

Employees can show off their culinary skills while saving a little lunch money too. Potlucks are economical, provide lunchtime variety in terms of dishes, and the best part is they’re a ton of workplace fun.

Next time your employees need a morale boost, try some of the suggestions above; they’ll make work seem like pleasure.

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