Work. Fun. They don’t have to be opposites. It makes sense that people who have fun at their job tend to work harder. Even more important, it influences the kind of service your customers receive. You and your team spend at least 50 percent of their waking hours at work. So why not make it more enjoyable?  Try these simple ways for your small business to have more fun as a team.

Need more convincing that fun equals greater productivity at work? Look at the Parnassus Work Fund. It’s a mutual fund that invests only in businesses proven to have outstanding workplaces. Returns on this fund have been four percent better than the S&P Index every year since its inception nearly ten years ago. It pays to have a favorable work environment.

5 Simple Ways to Make Work Fun

You don’t have to install expensive video games or fitness equipment to raise the fun level at work. Here are some simple ways to start:

• Show a Clip – Start the day with a comedy clip. YouTube is a treasure chest of easily accessible, free videos that can be emailed to associates or used to start an employee meeting. It’s almost impossible to start the workday off wrong after watching this one.
• Offer Free Fruit, Chocolate or Drinks – An unexpected treat can positively influence productivity (or so the research study found). Randomize how often you provide it. The element of surprise can make the effect even greater.
• Take Your Dog to Work – Allow well-behaved dogs to tag along at work. Two studies showed that dogs in the workplace might encourage greater collaboration. It’s the same theory that is used with pet therapy in healthcare settings. Of course, you may need to give equal time to the feline enthusiasts at work too.
• Puzzle Me This – Have a jigsaw puzzle out for people to work on at random. It’s an activity that can be done individually or in a group. Either way, it creates a shared experience that gets people talking. Who knows, the conversation might lead to a new way to solve a problem—something every business could use.
• Play It Forward – Each morning, play a 30-second clip from a popular song. Use an online library like iTunes or Pandora. The employee who correctly identifies it first, gets to select the song for tomorrow. It’s a chance for employees to learn a little more about each other. And it can also be a great equalizer when many generations are represented on your team.

People who work a 40-hour week spend half of their waking hours at work. And for small business owners who consider that a light week, the percentage is even higher. So why not pump up the “fun factor” at your business (and increase productivity too).