Here I am walking in the woods near our workplace playground. I am a little bit stuck in a project I am taking part in and walking in the open helps me think more clearly. I see the Mood Improver sitting in the arbor. When he notices me, he smiles and waves. I wave back and sit next to him. I feel it was the right time to hear his story. Our Mood Improver was one of the first guys hired at the playground. I am very curious how he came here and how he can always be in a good mood and “pass it” to other people. Here is what he told me: Continue reading “S01E09 The Story of the Mood Improver (Season Finale)”
Tag: workplace
Season 1: Special Episode
Today I was at yet another interview for my next boring (I shouldn’t be a pessimist) job.
I waited for 25 minutes for somebody to appear and drank my third coffee for the day. I used my time to look around. I saw some remarkable captions hanging here and there: Continue reading “Season 1: Special Episode”
S01E07 The partners
Our company is growing like a happy plant. I am at the playground now. It looks like a busy bee hive. Some people are having fun trying the new fu(r)niture, others are playing. Several families are here to lunch with some of our co-players. It reminds me that my family, my wife and my three kids, adore coming here. Like all co-players, they do not want to leave this place. But we have one rule in our Play Guide: Don’t overwork overplay! Continue reading “S01E07 The partners”
S01E06 The First Challenge
Hello from the construction site… I just have to wipe off the dirt from my hands in order to continue writing. So… we are very excited here at our workplace playground! We are building a technical center with a hi-tech laboratory and all extras. The whole team voted in favor of this project because many tech people had recently joined our team and they needed a place where they could test their ideas. Jon said that he even had a breakthrough in zero gravity vehicles… Continue reading “S01E06 The First Challenge”
S01E05 The Story of the Russian Coach
Yesterday I heard that Rina, the coach of our Russian team, would come here. I was so happy to see her. She is an amazing person. She is always smiling and compassionate. If you talk to her for even five minutes, you will have the feeling that you’ve known her all your life. We also call her an “idea generator” because she usually drives her team with 60 ideas per hour. It’s always fun to be around her. Continue reading “S01E05 The Story of the Russian Coach”
S01E04 The Story of the Traveler
Oh, it’s good to be at the office playground! Many people here say this for no apparent reason. My friends and non-believers are skeptical when I tell them about the way we work play and how the whole organization functions. A frequently asked question is: What about those who don’t want to sit in the office all the time? It’s not possible to satisfy all cravings. Continue reading “S01E04 The Story of the Traveler”
S01E03 The Very Beginning of My Story
I arrived late for work play today. Funny, I say this, as if we have fixed working hours or should come to work every day. In our office playground everybody comes when they want and stay as much as they want. Hurray! You would imagine empty desks. But the situation is quite different. The office is full of people from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m.; our boss coach often says that we have to go home earlier. Why? Our families can come here any time, have lunch, play…
Being in the office is so exciting, interesting and such fun that everyone comes almost every day (yes, including Saturdays and Sundays). Well, this happens when you give people the absolute freedom to choose what they want to do and encourage them to play and choose their challenges daily, if not hourly. And, boy, on top of all that, if you see what our office is like (link to second article), you will know why we are a bunch of workaholics. Continue reading “S01E03 The Very Beginning of My Story”
S01E02 Back from Vacation
I am back! My vacation is finally over. Don’t get me wrong these were two amazing weeks – a clear ocean, deserted beaches, wild adventures… but, boy, I did miss my office playground and colleagues co-players. My boss coach had sent me on that cruise because he thought I looked tired. He had asked me to take a month off, but after lengthy negotiations, we had shaken our hands on two weeks.
When I was on vacation, my thoughts constantly flied back to the playground. I was homesick. What a revolutionary idea was shimmering there? What new projects did my co-players create? Were they having great fun as usual? Continue reading “S01E02 Back from Vacation”