Watershed Solutions Blog

Posts Tagged ‘fun’

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“There are few, if any, jobs in which ability alone is sufficient. Needed, also, are loyalty, sincerity, enthusiasm and team play.” –William B. Given, Jr. Author

“When people go to work, they shouldn’t have to leave their hearts at home.” –Betty Bender, Motivational Speaker

“Far and away the best prize that life offers is the chance to work hard at work worth doing.” –Theodore Roosevelt, 26th President of the United States

”Nothing is really work unless you would rather be doing something else.” –James M. Barrie, Scottish Author and Dramatist

“The test of the artist does not lie in the will with which he goes to work, but in the excellence of the work he produces.” –Thomas Aquinas, Catholic Priest

Image courtesy of Michal Marcol / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

“When we engage in what we are naturally suited to do, our work takes on the quality of play and it is play that stimulates creativity.” ~Linda Naiman, Corporate Alchemist

“The creative is the place where no one else has ever been. You have to leave the city of your comfort and go into the wilderness of your intuition. What you’ll discover will be wonderful. What you’ll discover is yourself.” ~Alan Alda, American actor, director and screenwriter

“It is better to have enough ideas for some of them to be wrong, than to be always right by having no ideas at all.” ~Edward de Bono, s a physician, author, inventor, and consultant

“Nothing is done. Everything in the world remains to be done or done over. The greatest picture is not yet painted, the greatest play isn’t written, the greatest poem is unsung. There isn’t in all the world a perfect railroad, nor a good government, nor a sound law. Physics, mathematics, and especially the most advanced and exact of the sciences are being fundamentally revised. . . Psychology, economics, and sociology are awaiting a Darwin, whose work in turn is awaiting an Einstein.” ~Lincoln Steffens, American journalist, lecturer, and political philosopher

“The world is but a canvas to the imagination.” ~Henry David Thoreau, American author, poet, abolitionist

“Creativity requires the courage to let go of certainties.”~ Erich Fromm, 1900-1980, Psychologist

“Listen to anyone with an original idea, no matter how absurd it may sound at first. If you put fences around people, you get sheep. Give people the room they need.”~ William McKnight, 3M President

“All great deeds and all great thoughts have a ridiculous beginning.”~ Albert Camus, French Algerian author, philosopher and journalist

“If you hear a voice within you say, ‘You cannot paint,’ then by all means paint, and that voice will be silenced.”~ Vincent van Gogh, Dutch post-Impressionist painter

“Creativity is contagious. Pass it on.”~ Albert Einstein, German-born theoretical physicist

Here are more Gen Y dictionary of terms as promised.

• LI – LinkedIn
• OH – overheard
• TY – thank you
• FB – Facebook
• FWD – forward
• GN/GN8 – good night
• BBS- Be back soon
• BBT: Be back tomorrow
• OMG: Oh my God!
• OOTO: Out of the office

Look out for more terms soon.

Having trouble understanding your employees? We understand that their text messages and emails can be cryptic at best. So we’ve decided to help you out with our Gen Y dictionary of terms. We will add more terms as time goes on.

Brb – Be right back

Lol – Laugh out oud

Rofl – Rolling on the floor laughing

Tyt – Take your time

Cya – See you soon

G2g – Got to go

Sik – That is cool

Gr8 – Great

The Globe and Mail article On the job hunt, success can lead to setback highlights how difficult looking for work can be. This is especially true during the summer when so many employers are on vacation.

However there are many opportunities to network and have fun while you are doing it. Barbeques, beach parties or block parties are only a few examples of networking opportunities this time of year. These casual environments make it easier for job seekers to make the connections they need.

The most important thing to remember is to never lose momentum. If things are looking bright and a job looks like it’s all yours, keep your options open and don’t stop looking for more opportunities. Even if things look bleak, don’t lose hope and keep up with that networking schedule. You never know who you’ll meet in the process.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dt8bQ8QeyhE]

I would recommend FISH! Tales as it’s a fun and interesting book. At first, I thought it was about people going on a fishing trip. To my surprise, it consists of the FISH principle which is about creating a better fun workplace and actually based on Pike Place Fish market in Seattle. The FISH! Principle includes four themes: Play, Make Their Day, Be Present, and Choose Your Attitude.

Along the Play theme, the first story introduces how to implement fun into a call centre in one of the largest telecom companies – Sprint. The center transformed from a low energy group providing poor customer service into a place where employees were willingly to work overtime. It was all due to a high level manager who initiated fun in the office with games, music and t.v. Soon everyone started to lighten up at work. The result was great success as customers heard the joy in representatives’ voices and also felt their concern.

One example of the second theme Make their Day occurred in a car dealership. Once the owners paid the commission based on the number of units sold rather than price the employee’s sales increased and they began to offer customers better deals. Employees began to make their customer’s day because they were more honest and offering better prices. As a result employees became highly energized and eager to make their customers happy.

In Be Present, the third theme, one nurse was able to set an example for others by noticing the details of each of her patients., Soon all the nurses started paying attention to their patients and also began to have fun with them. For instance, nurses would reward “fish points” to patients for taking their medicine in the form of plastic and stuffed animal fish. These simple fish helped engage the patients and turn their moods around. In the end, these nurses were with their patients until they passed and the nurses’ service was recognized as one of the best nationally.

Choose Your Attitude, the final theme, was highlighted in a roofing company. Since there was little interaction between the employees and customers, employers started to question the attitude employees had towards their customers. What made the company stand out was that not only did the employers set an example by engaging customers but they also made community work one of their priorities. For instance, they would connect with their customers by teaching them how to build the roofs and contribute to the community by fixing an elderly ladies’ rotten roof. Their success was evident as they transformed a small roofing company to one of the industry leaders.

FISH! Tales is a great book for any manager or leader looking to bring more fun, enthusiasm or energy into their team or organization. The value of the book lies in the many real life applications of FISH! and their success.

As a manager and leader, FISH! Tales is an essential part of your work library.

In my laughter seminars, I talk about the importance of being able to laugh at yourself.  It’s a great way to show humility and take yourself lightly.

As we saw at the Olympic closing ceremony, it’s also a great way to deflect criticism and acknowledge your mistakes.  I loved that VANOC made fun of itself for the opening ceremonies torch malfunction.  Having the clown jump out of the floor and pretend to pull up the arm was their way of recognizing that embarrassing moment 16 days earlier.

Poking fun at yourself takes the sting out of your blunders and disarms your critics.  It’s a light hearted way of admitting you’re human and getting the first, and in this case, the last laugh.

If VANOC can laugh at themselves in front of the whole world, surely you can manage a chuckle or two at your home or office.