COULD YOU PLEASE SHARE SOME THOUGHTS ON HOW TO MAKE WORK FUN?

Making work fun is a challenge that the overwhelming majority of the people face. It is therefore essential that we first understand why work becomes a burden and not a pleasure. Here are some reasons to mull over.

We do the work that is not aligned with our interests or passions There is repetitive nature of work that bring in monotony and boredom Work pressures be it in terms of work load, challenge in the work, rework etc becomes stressful. We are not motivated by the work itself, work environment, rewards of work. Our personal aspirations and plans do not seem to fit into the long term prospects at work. We are forever seeing greener pastures elsewhere and consequentially staring at parched land in our own backyards.

Against this backdrop, we can attempt to find some solutions to make work more interesting, engaging and fun. Let us attempt to seek it in the following ways: The ideal solution would be to try and do something you are passionate about and if you get lucky then you would never have to work a day in your life. However very very few are blessed with their dream job so almost of us have to find other alternatives to make the job fun. Focus on the fun part of the job it could be the work environment, the good colleagues and / or boss, some important aspects of the job itself that you love etc. Find ways and means to cope with the repetitive nature of the job or the monotony of the work. E.g. some telephone operators pride themselves on identifying the caller by the voice/ tone/style of those calling in or there are others who set their own standards of excellence for the various jobs they do and get a high when they meet those standards Make the work area more appealing and welcoming by being tidy/ organized/ orderly. You can even put up motivational quotes / pictures/ have a 366 day calendar with inspirational words etc. Leverage your personal nature / style / interests to that of the job. E.g. if you are an extrovert find reasons to meet others or for others to meet you (this should not affect your efficiency though) or. Sharing is a wonderful way to spread cheer around. Share something related to your passion with colleagues at break time and/ or encourage others to do the same. On special occasions sharing of sweets or special foodstuff brings about special warmth amongst colleagues. There are many inputs on work engagement in this site which can give you numerous ideas to make the work place more fun by getting the employees involved in various ways not directly related to their jobs. Try to source the same and implement them at the work place. Finally as they say a smile is a curve that sets everything straight. Smile and spread cheer both within yourself and amongst those around. Find something in the work place to smile about it could be the whacko ways of a colleague or boss or the not too serious goofup that you did. Learn to smile more even if it is at the irony of the insipid work life that you have cope with.