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Easy Office Morale Boosters

October 4, 1999

1. "Order pizza or a huge submarine sandwich for a communal lunch.
2. Designate a bulletin board as a place for employees to post favorite jokes, cartoons, etc.
3. Attach cartoons or humorous anecdotes to the more mundane memos that need to be circulated.
4. Schedule a staff meeting off-site in a congenial atmosphere; if possible, follow up with a casual social event.
5. Schedule and Ugly Tie (or Crazy Sweater or Silly Socks) Day with a joke prize for the winner.
6. Hold betting pools for such high-profile events as the Super Bowl, the Kentucky Derby, the Oscars, the Emmys and the World Series.
7. Take a daily humor break; designate someone to share a joke or funny story with the rest of the staff.
8. During a lunch break, screen a funny film or television show in a conference room or large office.
9. Bring a Polaroid camera to work.  Take candid shots of employees and post the results throughout the office.
10. Make it a point to smile and say hello to office mates.
11. Give everyone an opportunity to arrive an hour late or leave an hour early one day a week.
12. Never take anything too seriously.  Keep reminding yourself, 'This isn't brain surgery'  (Unless, of course, it is brain surgery.) (Nelson, 1994, pp. 79-80)."

Reference:  Nelson, B. (1994).  1001 ways to reward employees.  pps.79-80.  New York: Workman Publishing

What are you doing to boost morale in your office?

* On Leadership is available on loan at the OSU Leadership Center.  A listing of all the Leadership Center's resources is available on our website www.ag.ohio-state.edu/~leaders

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Created: 2009-01-06, Updated: 2009-01-16