Why is work so serious all the time? It's really rather odd if you stop to think about it. There seems to be a perception that laughter at work implies people are not working hard enough. Is that it? Are we stuck on the notion that a workplace filled with folks laughing is a workplace filled with people goofing around, and therefore not working? I think we are. But that's crazy.
We all know that laughter is touted as "the best medicine," and for good reason. It is good for the soul. And if there is anything our workforce could use right about now, it's a little soul. OK maybe a lot, because Corporate America is about as dysfunctional and unhealthy as it gets, perhaps second only to our government. So yes, I think a little "medicine" is exactly what we need.
Humor is uplifting. It generates levity and makes people feel more open as a result. They in turn are then more apt to freely share information, communicate better and work together effectively in teams. It's a no brainer. Happy people make a happy workplace and a happy workplace produces positive results.
But beware. Like most things in life there is a flipside and humor is no exception. It has its dark side too. Because as much as teams and businesses thrive when employees feel "happy," the wrong kind of humor can destroy morale and poison an environment. So the question then becomes, "How do we create and participate in healthy environments where humor works for and not against us?"
Well, before doing anything else, we must understand company culture because it is to business what personalities are to individuals. Some are healthy and others are not, in the same way that some are positive while some are negative, and some are nice while some are mean. In other words, humor has the power to hurt or heal and is a direct reflection of attitudes, sensibilities and values, whether it belongs to an individual or an organization. And since humor is also a matter of subjective interpretation, employing it successfully therefore depends on how its pitfalls are managed and its advantages exploited by all those involved.
A simple framework can help.
1. Humor is in the eye of the beholder. Set boundaries of what is appropriate and what is not, because what some people find humorous, others will find offensive.
2. Keep it clean and kind. Humor should never hurt or embarrass any individual or group of individuals. If people are made to feel self-conscious or ashamed, the effects will be costly to productivity, morale and overall cohesion.
3. Make it fun. Humor at work is part attitude, part action. Don't be afraid of to use its benefits for good. It can be integrated into everyday business activities without any effort at all.
4. Allocate time. Break up the monotony of the "nose to the grindstone," work, work, work mentality. Make time to laugh and have fun if it isn't happening naturally.
5. Find what's funny in everyday life. Spontaneous humor is as important, and possibly even more therapeutic, than formal efforts to incorporate it into our daily work lives. One of the best ways is to look for and find opportunities to laugh at yourself. This does not mean doing so critically or with judgment, but rather in a way that makes you and others smile.
6. Balance responsibility. Organizations and individuals need to be equally accountable for making the right (versus the wrong) choices. Behaviors are shaped and organizational behavior is no exception.
7. Nip it in the bud. Mean-spirited jokes should be met with intolerance because if allowed, ill-intended humor and its effects will spread through an organization like cancer and imbue it with a dark cloud.
8. Measure success. Look for laughs. If people are smiling and laughing, you have proof that humor is working in your workplace.
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