How to Make a Successful Office and Workspace

Bring peace and harmony into your workplace. Today we’re going to talk about what’s important in the workplace. This could be anything from that coffee machine to anything else that you think people hold value to. I find, for us, there’s a lot of things that really just pump up people’s spirits. We have a pool table and ping-pong table so that when people are keen on Friday knock-offs, they’re able to kick their weekend off with a bit of a laugh.

Have a Flexible Friday

We normally do Friday half-days, and the reason we do that is that it makes work more fun for our staff. They’re able to jump out and collaborate in an informal way. You can talk about stuff that’s not work related, and you’re not just having all work at work. You’re having some fun at work.

Make Sure Conversation Is Encouraged

One thing that I sincerely suggest you do not do is to enforce a no-talking policy. Some businesses have a rule where no one is allowed to talk to each other unless it’s on their lunch break, and a lot of the time their lunch breaks don’t line up. It makes no sense, but they do this and I think that’s silly. You need to have a fantastic ecosystem, an environment for your staff to thrive. If you planted plants and you didn’t water them, you would be annoyed when the crops didn’t grow, but it would be your fault. You need to make sure that the whole company wants to grow together. And knowing each other in an informal way is a great way to have your company grow. You might find that people will start talking about things and go, “I didn’t realise you like cricket, I love cricket!” And they start talking about that and they start hanging out outside of office hours, and that’s a great thing. That means you’re creating these bonds and relationships within your work environment.

Have a Relaxing Environment

We have beers on tap, and that’s something I’ve seen a couple of businesses do now, and it’s a hip “hipster”-ish, sure, but I think it’s great if you can have that sort of relaxation in the office. Another great thing that you can do is get some bean bags and make a fun little chill-out zone. If you’re not sure of what to put into your business, look to the big boys. Look at how Google’s doing it. They have these pod setups where they’re able to co-work and collaborate with people from different parts of the company, and all work together in harmony. Being boring is easy. Standing out and being a bit more fun is great. You want it so people want to come to work. They want to come here and have a place where they can cool down, calm down, and relax.

Bring in Some Snacks

Doing things where you’re able to bring other items into the business is a great idea as well. It shows that you’re giving back and that you do care about your staff. It really makes a difference to just sit down, listen and talk to them so they can see that you are a real person. Remember when you were in school and you’re looking at your teacher and you’re thinking, “Do they live here? Are they actually a robot? They’re here all the time, they don’t really seem like they have any home life, social life. Do they have a wife? Do they have kids? Who knows, it doesn’t matter.”

In a sense, a lot of your staff, if you’re acting robotic and you’re not creating a relationship with them, will feel the same way. So stop being a robot. Show that you’re a human and actually go out and make a connection. Become someone with your staff where you’re able to talk to them and really listen to them, and see what your staff want to have in the business. It could be anything.

Participate in Group Events

The other thing that can really make your workplace spirit grow is participating in different events where you’re able to have everyone work together as a team to achieve something. It shows that you do have a human side and that your business is bigger than you, and you’re trying to grow something that’s going to be bigger than just what you’ve got. If you can do it for a charity that is even better.

The Final Word

It doesn’t cost a lot of money to be fun. Just a bit of time and creativity, and you can get that all happening. I hope you’ve enjoyed this today, and please jump across to iTunes and leave us a review if you have the time, it would really help. Stay good!

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