Corporations large and small have shown that playing and having fun at work improves the bottom line by increasing productivity; tearing down barriers and opening the lines of communication. strengthening Self Directed Work team bonds; helping to relieve stress, tension and anxiety; promoting creativity and ingenuity; motivating employees: improving inter-personal work relationships, encouraging people to learn new job-related skills, and the list goes on.

The Customer Support Division of Honeywell, the company I work for, Iisted in their Direction For The Future" three key themes. The first theme being - We will be the employer of choice by delighting our employees. "What a novel idea! I believe every company should encourage and promote the idea of delighting their employees.

I am the author of a humor column (the Humor well) for Honeywell's Business and Commuter Aviation Systems Division (BCASD) monthly newsletter the BCAS Beacon. In my March column I proposed that BCAS institute a Participative PLAY

Program with the slogan: "Having Fun Helps Get The Job Done!"

In the article I challenged all BCAS employees to take the time and think of just one way to promote PLAY in their work group. Some ideas I offered included:

1) Give a humorous card to Team members on their birthday or wedding anniversary.

2) Have Team members bring in one of their baby pictures to put up on a bulletin board and guess who's who.

3) When training new members, strive to get the information across in a FUN way.

4) Have a job-related word-of-the-week. The Team member who uses the word the most during the week wins a vacation day... okay maybe a Coke.

5) Have a Team costume day.

6) Have a Good-Humor bulletin board where Team members can put up humorous articles, cartoons, congratulations, etc.

7) Build a picnic-playground on Honeywell property with swings and slides that employees can use during recess, I mean breaks, and lunch. Plus after work, employees can bring their family to the plant for picnic and PLAY.

8) Paint hop-scotch patterns on the sidewalks.

9) Put some Dr. Seuss books, other children's books and maybe some toys in the front lobby for our visitors, suppliers and customers to read and play with. This will communicate that we are a company with a sense of humor and a promoter of PLAY.

10) Have colorful humorous cartoon displays on walls in the halls and in stalls.

11 ) Once a month rent an ice-cream push cart with bells and then have one member of management be the Good Humorwell Person to sell cups of ice-cream and talk to the employees to see how things are going.

12) On the company's birthday anniversary, have a FUN celebration with clowns and cake and animal balloons and juggling and lions and tigers and bears. Oh My!