By Viren Naidu
At Beryl Call Centers, in Bedford Texas, the CEO once rode through the office on rollerblades dressed as a matador. Sounds crazy? Michael Kerr, an international Hall of Fame business speaker and president of Humour at Work shares more insights:
Humour, take it seriously
Studies find that people tend to respect people more who laugh at themselves. It also helps leaders come across as more authentic and real, and therefore, helps build trust at work. One simple activity to do is to have a ‘bonehead award’ or ‘blooper award’ as a prize once a month for whoever committed the biggest ‘oops’. Another key is to practice what I’d call ‘relevant humour’ (humour that is linked to your company’s brand and style and tied to your particular profession or trade). Celebrating an offbeat, fun theme day once a month is a simple, fun way to keep humour alive. For example, ‘High-Five Day’ where everyone high-fives each other; ‘Monochromatic Day’ when everyone dresses up in black and/or white, or ‘Third Person Thursdays’ where everyone talks about themselves in the third person are workable plans.