How to Make Work Really, Really Fun

No manager ever says, “Let’s make our company a boring place to work.” Yet, many do exactly that. To instill more fun and excitement into work, design jobs so they feel more like games. This means providing a sharply focused, urgent goal and a very tight deadline. Set up autonomous teams and encourage them to experiment. Even long-term goals can be broken into smaller game-like chunks. Think 10 or 15 weeks instead of 6 months of a year. For each goal, ask a team to plan an approach and carry it out. The whole effort should encourage creativity.

No manager ever says, “Let’s make our company a boring place to work.” Yet, many do exactly that. To instill more fun and excitement into work, design jobs so they feel more like games. This means providing a sharply focused, urgent goal and a very tight deadline. Set up autonomous teams and encourage them to experiment. Even long-term goals can be broken into smaller game-like chunks. Think 10 or 15 weeks instead of 6 months of a year. For each goal, ask a team to plan an approach and carry it out. The whole effort should encourage creativity.

Steven HorwitzAnd now a diversion from the serious side to the fun side of Austrian economics.At dinner last night, the conversation turned to some of the details of Mises's remarkable life.  I commented that his whole life story, especially his dodging and escaping the Nazis, might make a good movie.  That, of course, led to speculation as who to cast as Lu and Margit.

Submitted by Charles Hugh-Smith of OfTwoMinds blog, The insecurity of self-employment can generate a far more resilient life and mindset.

This weekend I attended a wedding where smartphones being used as cameras were everywhere. It really highlighted for me how people don’t live in the moment anymore. The idea of removing the barrier between you and the moment you are enjoying has always been a dream of mine. I resent spending time at my kids’ birthday parties watching the candles be blown out on a 4-inch screen instead of being fully immersed in my children’s happiness.