tips for making a corporate job less ~corporate?~

I work in a hybrid office (in office 3 days a work, home 2 days a week) and man the grind gets to ya sometimes! what are some ways you find joy?

Question

tips for making a corporate job less ~corporate?~

I work in a hybrid office (in office 3 days a work, home 2 days a week) and man the grind gets to ya sometimes! what are some ways you find joy?

Claire · Answer

Start a sandwich CSA with your coworkers: Did this for 2+ years at a former job, and it was a career highlight to say the least. The short of it: we had ~30 members across different depts who paid $20/month for a sandwich and dessert every Monday. Each week, 2 people would make 15 sandwiches each, and one person would make dessert for all 30. If you made food, your month was free. The dues covered the cost of ingredients.

We ate so many delicious sandwiches, saved money, got product donations, bought an office panini press, and “boosted morale” in ways HR depts could only dream of. I miss those (pre-pandemic/remote work) days, and all those sandwiches!!

Jenni · Answer

initiate community activities for the office!: I’ve been bringing fun to work for a little over a year now, and it’s been a great way to shake up the monotony of the daily grind and also spread some joy to your coworkers! I put together a “free little library” in the office on an empty bookshelf in a reservable meeting space, started putting out a rotation of community puzzles in the back of the office, and I work with some other coworkers to plan a few lowkey after work happy hours or lunch-time events in the conference room. We also hold bake-offs from time to time and run a couple themed month-long campaigns where everyone in the office gets a little treat by the end (i.e. Halloween = coworkers take turns leaving candy on each others desks throughout the month of October until everyone has received some). Don’t be afraid to get silly with it! With permission from the powers that be, of course.

Gail · Answer

"Daily Drip": Nod to someone else's response with Slack Channels -- this is the title of one of my work's slack channels! Someone will send out a Giphy of the Bat signal, and we'll walk to a coffee shop for a lil treat. Great way to make friends at work - which makes the days easier - and a needed break from screens.

Bree · Answer

Today Was Fun: A Book About Work (Seriously): ooh i wrote a book about this! you might enjoy :)

Mary · Answer

Funny Slack Channels: Funny slack channels were already happening at our company before I started there, but I like to think I’ve helped them grow!

In one of our favorite slack channels, we post funny things clients say, often taken out of context. It helps us all decompress, and we often race to post crazy things we hear when there’s several of us in client meetings!

Mary · Answer

Lunch break walk aka Hot Girl Walk: Weather permitting, I try to walk on my lunch break with a friend everyday I’m in the office. We usually do a mile!

One summer I joked it was a “hot girl walk” because I got so sweaty, and the name stuck at the office!

The walks give me a chance to get to know my coworkers without having to talk about work. They’ve been great for my mental health and making friends! (We also have a dog-friendly office.)