Think entering into the daily world of work is nothing short of drudgery? If so, then maybe you need a few playful sessions with Matt Weinstein of Playfair. Weinstein is known as the foremost authority on the use of fun and humor as a management skill. He teaches workers as well as college students to loosen up.

According to Weinstein, people too often think of work as a "ball and chain" type of atmosphere. In reality, when play and creativity are injected into a company's atmosphere, workers are not only happier with their jobs, but they are often more productive as well.

Weinstein offers tips on how to inject positive fun into the often staid business atmosphere. Among other ideas, he suggests spontaneous pizza parties, giving surprise days off or even signing time cards with a silly pen, such as a rubber pickle pen.

Recently, Weinstein took time out of his schedule to share some of his ideas about adopting play in the workplace, and how new workers can carry this philosophy into their first professional job.

Q: Can you tell our readers a little bit about your background and about your company, Playfair?

A: I've been an actor and a therapist. I originally used fun and play with actors -- and then brought it to the business sector.

People like working for my company, Playfair. Those people are part of the "emperor's court." I'm the emperor, of course, and they are the court. Every year, we get together and go on fun trips planned especially for the emperor's court.

Q: In your book, Managing to Have Fun, you offer readers a simple program to "enrich and enliven" any organization by using fun and creative approaches to business.

A: Play can be used in any organization or setting. As an example, every year we speak to college freshmen on 300 campuses throughout the country. Many new college students drop out of school because they feel like they don't fit in.

We help them with that by incorporating a creative team-building effort and helping them feel more comfortable in the college atmosphere.

In business, most companies don't believe in fun. Historically, work is supposed to be hard. We try to show companies that work can be fun!

Q: In recent years, young people were often disparaged as "slackers" who wanted to work less and get paid more -- or play instead of work. What would you tell students who are preparing to go to work for the first time? How can they safely incorporate play into their work lives, yet maintain productivity at the same time, so they won't be accused of being slackers?

A: The most difficult thing is to try and convince your boss. But the evidence is overwhelming -- play does help productiveness. And in the long run, it's more cost-productive. Most Fortune 500 companies recognize this, and they're incorporating this into their businesses.

Right now, the economy is booming and businesses are wondering how they'll keep employees. Money is no longer the answer -- there has to be something else. The answer is to make work fun to retain employees.

Q: In your other recent book, Work Like Your Dog, you mention 50 lessons for "frolicking your way to success." Why haven't workers already learned to incorporate some of these ideas in their work themselves? What holds them back the most?

A: They feel disconnected. It's a mindset that's hard to break. The traditional way of thinking is that work is supposed to be like a "ball and chain." Our work culture has to shift -- it's a matter of re-education.

Q: If you were standing in a room full of high schoolers and their teachers and counsellors right now, and if you had five minutes to make your most important point to the audience about how to succeed in a career while managing to have fun, what would you tell them?

A: I'd tell them that everybody's a beginner. Just start out by doing something simple. You can be a source of play by maybe buying a bouquet of flowers and passing it around, and everyone gets to have it for a certain amount of time. Or perhaps by buying someone a box of chocolates to show appreciation for a job well done -- that's a great start.

The main thing is to remember that you shouldn't expect to have it handed to you. Learn to bring fun into your work by being proactive. In general, people have been beaten down too long and they believe work can't be fun, so start some play on your own. You'll find that everyone responds to this!

Q: What exciting projects are you currently involved in?

A: There's nothing definite right now, but I've been thinking about doing a book sequel to Work Like Your Dog. The possible title might be Live Like Your Dog. You see, dogs don't work and play differently -- everything can be fun to dogs. We need to learn to approach life and work just like our dog does, and make both of them fun.

Net Sites

Playfair

Matt Weinstein's company

http://www.playfair.com/

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