Do you remember as a child your grandmother spoiling you and justifying it by saying something along the lines of ” a little bit of what you like won’t hurt you”?
Well, I know my grandmother certainly did. In fact, it was usually when she was giving me a treat of sweets that my mum had said I wasn’t meant to have!! Boy, did those sweets taste great!
I was always excited and usually in my excitement would drop my grandmother in it with my mother, something along the lines of ” you’ll never guess what we had xxxx and then we did xxx ” and so on. In fact I would often feel really energised and excited because of this small act. It was a break from the norm and I loved it! On reflection it was the unexpectedness of the ‘treat’ that made me excited.
Thinking about this now, I realise that in actual fact, whenever I do something outside of my expectation I am energised and invigorated. When I have had jobs that require you to sit behind your desk all day suddenly offer you the chance to have a business meeting outside in the glorious sunshine, or the ice cream van turns up and the treats are on the company, I get an unexpected parcel in the post,… the list is endless … I feel excited and energised.
What happens when I am excited and energised? I am so much more productive and creative, and even my most boring mundane tasks take on a new rosy glow.
So how can you translate this into your workplace?
Give your employees something nice, that is unexpected!
No this doesn’t have to break the bank, in fact it doesn’t have to cost anything, if the weather is nice take that meeting outside!
If you have a small budget, call up the local ice cream van and ask them to come on site, you are supporting local businesses and we are sure you will be able to strike up a deal that won’t break the bank. Or alternatively buy doughnuts from the local bakers for everyone at coffee break.
What will you get in return? Enthusiastic employees who are more productive, creative and zip through those mundane everyday tasks that no one likes!
[Tip: You could come up with a regular 'treat' like Friday cake day which will give everyone a bit more bounce at the end of the week. Or you could drop in surprises from time to time to take advantage of the added frisson of the unexpected.]
If you have some other great ideas we’d love to hear them, leave a comment below.
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Photo credit: Łukasz Strachanowski
Article by Hayley Oats
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Great blog. Reading it bought back many happy memories of my Gran’s treats.
Def agree, a treat builds moral and productivity, esp in this gloomy economic situation.