Lighten Up, It’s Only Work

At a tense press conference during a hostile takeover I covered as a young reporter, I got the last question. I asked the CEO of the company under siege to tell us a joke. “A joke?” he asked. “Yeah,” I said. “You’re supposed to be funny. Tell us a joke.”

Obviously, it could have been a disaster. But he whipped out a joke that not only made us laugh, it sent a message to the company pursuing his. He also made his own employees relax a bit — if the boss could tell a joke at a press conference, the takeover wasn’t going to kill them, either. I got compliments about that question for years (sadly, I didn’t have space to use the joke in my story, though the Chicago Tribune did).[to read the joke, see the second comment.]

Humor is a dangerous thing at work. My question could easily have backfired on me (I probably wouldn’t ask it now that I’m a grizzled veteran). His joke could’ve backfired on him. But even mild humor can help inspire people to work harder, be more creative, builds loyalty, improves health and seems to increase potential for wealth.

So says “The Levity Effect,” a new book by Adrian Gostick and Scott Christopher. It’s a light-hearted, bantering book that mixes in some research here and there about the power of keeping things light at work. It’s not about turning into the stand-up CEO; they say at one point you don’t have to be Andy Kaufman, just Andy Griffith. Allow people to have fun, to break out of the routine a little, avoid being a “jaw clencher” or “brow knitter” — their words for corporate killjoys — and the workplace will likely see productivity increases.

This isn’t one of those books that wows you with its intelligence or insight. No harrumphing here. In fact, a lot of it will feel familiar (stop me if you’ve heard this one…) But it is a useful book. It’s filled with examples of how the workplace can be more fun, and how that can help the bottom line. Some of them feel annoying (humor is, after all, subjective), but many of them seem like ideas any manager might try to boost the working environment. KPMG, for instance, has a movie challenge, where employees who pick the most Oscar winners receive prizes. It also has been known to send gift certificates for Omaha Steaks for a long 4th of July weekend. KPMG has seen employee satisfaction ratings climb and turnover hit all-time lows. Neither of these are difficult things to do. For those seeking inspiration, the book even has a chapter on “142 Ways to have fun at work.”

Some of the research seems thin (though they go out of their way not to beat readers over the head with research). But some of it is also eye-opening, like research that has found bonuses correlate with senses of humor (on the other hand, this same piece of research gets cited at least three times). They have some hit-and-miss lists of tips on how to lighten up the workplace, and a few that are genuinely funny, like a list of eight jokes you can use to start a presentation. And they include the four things executives do that aren’t funny:

• Say they’re ‘just kidding.’
• Mock people.
• Use sarcasm.
• Tell jokes in anger, to get back at someone.

For those executives who worry about the damage fun can do to the company’s credibility, the authors have this to say: “have you ever worked at a place that was too much fun? Where you couldn’t get anything done because of the parties and all-around gaiety? Didn’t think so.”Relax. Watch a funny movie and write down your favorite line. Crack open a book of jokes and memorize one, for use in appropriate context. Who can argue with homework like that?

Big Think Breakdown: “The Levity Effect” makes for a great change of pace from the normal business airplane read. It should spark new ideas and make the people you work with happier to work with you.

By Michael Fitzgerald