In companies where people have fun, the productivity and the profit are higher. The American Psychological Association has published surveys about this, and it’s a fact. Take the example of Southwest Airlines - do you know that "a sense of humor" is on their job application?! I believe that this attitude and culture has helped their business become one of the major success stories of our time. After September 11th, when all the airlines were having major downturns, Southwest was still in the black. I believe this was because their "sense of humor" attitude made people feel comfortable to fly with them.

Attitude

Attitude and behavior are a choice, and I believe in banning bad attitudes. A great technique to integrate this culture into your business is to begin with a simple strategy called "Good Attitude Wednesday." Every Wednesday, everyone is in a good mood, no bad attitudes allowed. This energy is infectious, you can’t be in a bad mood when everyone around you is in a good mood. Once you begin, it’s easy to extend this into the rest of the week. The effect will appear in your bottom line, and lower turnover will be one of the many side benefits.

Eliminate Negativity from the Workplace

If you’ve ever had to let someone go because of a negative attitude, you probably got a response from the rest of the team that was something like, "What took you so long?" One negative person can bring down an entire workforce. When that person walks into the front door, the feeling they bring with them is almost palpable, you can feel it. It’s like a fog that causes dampened spirits in everyone. In one company I consulted for, they had an individual who, though he was very important to the company and doing a highly detailed task, was a misanthrope. This individual did not like people, and people did not like him. Through some quality brainstorming, we came up with an idea that was a little off-beat, but seemed to serve everyone well. The CEO decided to clean out a storage closet, and put in a desk and computer so that this individual could have his own office. He would come in to the office in the morning carrying his lunch, go into his office, close the door behind him and leave at the end of the day. He was happy because he had an office of his own, and the staff was happy because they no longer had to contend with his negativity. Whether you have to let someone go, or find them a place where they won’t interfere with the rest of your team, I urge you to "sooner rather than later" remove negative individuals from your workplace.

Implement Fun Experiences

Keeping the energy high and incorporating fun takes a little thought, but there are many simple and inexpensive ways to do this. Every now and then, bring in something different and uplifting for your team, like an ice cream cart, a popcorn machine, or a cappuccino maker (you may actually want to keep this one). Bowling parties, outdoor meetings, retreats held in unusual destinations (like Bora Bora) are other ways to uplift people and get them thinking outside the box. It also builds that esprit de corps, the team spirit, that seems to fade away during difficult economic times, such as we are currently facing. It doesn’t take much thought and usually doesn’t cost much money to help people have a good time. Even something as simple as "Hawaiian Shirt Day" can turn a slow quarter into a positive attitude for the next quarter.

Knowledge Lunch

Here’s a different idea to help you educate your team for very little money. Once a week, have each team member select an article that they think is germane to the client or project you are currently focusing on. Bring in a couple of pizzas and during lunch, have everyone sit around a table and share their article with their coworkers. It’s a great way to educate them about new clients, new industries and any other current events that are pertinent to your business.