INTRODUCTION
Work is often regarded as a burden, something
necessary to earn money in order to enjoy leisure time. It is regarded as a burden only by those in
work; seen as a privilege by those out of work.
Most people are not having a lot of fun at work. The most successful people in business do not
go out to work; they go out to play! Fun
and laughter are believed to be good for business.
Laughter, play and a sense of humor are key
tools for improving communication. It
helps team members to become more creative, collaborative, lower stress and
accelerate learning. Frasier Morrison,
managing director of the Morrison Construction Group said that fantastic team
spirit contributed to the company’s success, and a sense of humor was a key
element in generating team spirit.
Research has revealed that when individuals
are having fun, chemicals such as endorphins, epinephrine and adrenalin are
released in the body. It increases the
energy and sense of wellbeing. It also opens
pathways to more creative thinking and decision making, higher self-esteem and
better performance. Laughter and fun can
lower stress and its related health effects, such as heart disease, digestive
problems and susceptibility to colds. Lack
of joy, celebration and humor can destroy a feeling of self-worth and
self-empowerment.
LAUGHTER
AND PEOPLE
Humor and laughter can reduce pain, relax
muscles, and lower blood pressure.
Laughter increases endorphins, the feel-good chemicals. Humor has advantageous effects in physical
health, psychological status, and social life.
10 minutes of laughter is equivalent to 2 hours of relaxed sleep. People who laugh more are more likely to cope
with stress of everyday life and tend to bond with people and communicate with
one another more effectively.
HUMOR
AND TEAMWORK
Team is a group of people who collaborate
in pursuit of a common goal. Groups that
do not collaborate are not teams, even though they may be working towards a
common goal. Interpersonal skills are communication
skills which go beyond a formal feedback structure and allow for a free flow of
information between all team members.
One ingredient for building team
performance is the power of positive feedback.
One of the greatest experiences people want and can have is recognition
for a job well done. The appropriate supportive
humor keeps the spirit of a team both happy and healthy.
Laughter is also known to ease tension
between individuals, and thus promoting teamwork. People should have a sense of humor in order
to help them better muddle through the many issues a team will face on the path
toward achieving its goals. Laughter,
play and a good sense of humor also help people to learn more, learn it faster
and recall it easily.
HUMOR
IN WORKPLACE
It is true that a single smile can lift the spirits, well-timed mirth can inspire motivation and greater productivity, and appropriate
laughter is a universal currency which can raise the stakes almost everywhere.
Enjoyment in employment is vital! Enjoyment in employment is an essential ingredient
of creative growth, innovative development and happy enterprise.
It is common knowledge that the most
important resources in any workplace are the human resources. Work, as it may be, is not just about getting
the job done; it is about learning new skills, enjoying social interaction,
developing confidence, fulfilling a purpose, tasting success, learning from
apparent failures, and experiencing fulfillment. Work is as natural as play. The most effective workforce is a happy
workforce which is well valued, highly prized, treated well; and allowed to
have fun, be creative, innovate, experiment and develop. People come to work
not just for employment, but for enjoyment too.
Laughter, play and a good sense of humor is
found to help people to learn more, learn it faster and recall it easily. The “inner child” that exists in every adult can
greatly help to put more joy into life, and especially into work. It’s just that we have to know how and when
to extract it. Humor is a message whose
ingenuity or verbal skill or incongruity has the power to evoke laughter. Laughter is a way of expressing humor. And laughter loosens tensions up, loosens the
rigorous thoughts, frees the tensed mind, and softens the rigid boundaries. Humor and laughter can reduce tension, anger,
and frustration.
Humor at work lowers employee feeling of
anxiety, alleviates some boredom, and reduces their perceived level of stress. Humor and laughter serve to provide a
distraction, a safe relief of negative energy, and a counter-balance to the
seriousness inherent in many jobs.
Exercising a sense of humor will help managers to make employees feel
part of the company.
FUN
IN THE WORKPLACE
A fun work environment will increase the
levels of enthusiasm, satisfaction, creativity, and communication among
employees, and enhance feelings of group cohesiveness. A fun workplace will contribute to the
strength of an organizations’ corporate culture. The importance of humor and laughter is greatly
underestimated. Humor is useful as
- a tension
reducer, that it brings about a sense of relaxation.
- a binding
force, an adhesive.
- a channel
through which employees can share a common experience, and in the process come
to know and accept one another.
- in
tension reduction, attention getting, and making or emphasizing a point.
Humor can have a positive impact on group
cohesiveness, drawing employees together toward common goals.
CONCLUSION
Humor works best when it matches with one’s
personality. Humor loosens up people and
gives them a greater perspective on themselves. A good sense of humor relaxes people and
improves personal interactions. Humor
allows people to make mistakes and say wrong things. Humor is a way to let go of negative feelings.
Humor allows people to start afresh and
be more receptive to positive messages. It
is in the interest of all of us - managers, colleagues, workers, clients and
customers – that we make work joyful, fun and happy. Excellence is inspired by a happy
environment. People with a winning smile
win because they smile!
Be human at work and enjoy your colleagues
and staff. Smile more and laugh out loud
periodically.
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117 – 120
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