Here's a subversive thought. Why can't work be fun? Think about it. Let's say you own and operate your own business. You're likely spend up to twelve hours more a week working than the people who work for you. So shouldn't it at least be enjoyable?
According to this piece from EffectiveMeetings.com, far too many people spend five days of their week just waiting for the weekend when they could be having a good time.
Author Gary Locking explains that the Calvinist notion that work shouldn't be fun goes back centuries. Over the years, he says, the ideas of "Work really hard and you'll be rewarded" or "You're here to work, not play around. Get busy" took hold in our collective consciousness. This has created a strange problem in the modern work force.
Employees began to look forward to their time off. However, as the work place pace increased, people felt like they had to take less and less time off to fit in more work. So, as the pace of life increased, workers began spending more time at the office
Lockwood suggests that it may be time to throw out that old model of "nose to the grindstone." He suggests several ideas for trying to make work fun. Perhaps a contest where the prize is a "no work Saturday" would be a good motivator with an appealing goal. {Hey, what about "no work Monday" – ed]
He also suggests that someone take the time to write down the things they enjoy doing, things you do easily and things that make time fly when you do them. Perhaps where those lists meet, is really the area you should be concentrating on when it comes to your job.
Ultimately, Lockwood has a simple message, however you go about trying to do it. Lighten up.
