Thursday, December 12, 2013

Fun fun fun.

There's a trend in our business, in fact in many businesses, that work should be a place of comradeship, conviviality and fun.

An op-ed in "The New York Times" today speaks of the eyeglass company Warby Parker as having the goal of injecting "fun and quirkiness into everything they do." Other companies are employing Chief Fun Officers or Happiness Engineers. More, of course, decide to have "brewskis" or ping-pong, or pizza every now and again.

I know no one wants to work with a modern-day Heinrich Himmler, but I don't go to work to be cheery, to have fun, to smile. I'm glad I work with a generally agreeable bunch of people--a few of whom I genuinely like, but asking me to be someone I'm not, asking me to be genial, smiley and ambient is not what I do.

My gloomy style should be as accepted as that of the party-planning back-slapping morale monger. Frankly, isn't that what diversity is, in part, about.

It's nice when work is fun.

But, for me at least, work is first and foremost work.

I prefer not to ride scooters around the office and have a secret Santa.

I prefer doing my work my way.

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