It’s about time your office planned a Team Building Retreat
Picture this: a group of professionals stepping out of their suits and ties, donning goofy T-shirts, stepping out into sunlight after weeks of deskbound workdays and bedbound Sundays. Before we get there, let us first understand how this retreat came to be, in the first place.
The HR strongly felt that a little sunshine and chlorophyll exposure would make employees momentarily forget about their dull existence. But when the management asked for venue suggestions, the team had just said, “Get us as far away from the office as possible!” And thus, they embarked on their journey to a resort they could find just ever so slightly outside of city limits, ensuring a few trees and shrubs here and there.
Our journey begins as our fearless team sets foot in the resort lawn, armed with sunscreen, high hopes, and questionable dance moves. The excitement is palpable, but so is the skepticism – after all, can trust falls really fix a printer jam? Spoiler alert: probably not, but they sure make for a good laugh.
One of the first team-building exercises involves a trust fall. The team members, still getting accustomed to the idea of vulnerability, hesitate at first. Yet, the laughter and encouragement from their colleagues encourage them to take the plunge, both figuratively and literally. The unexpected challenge arises when the tallest team member, Dave, is designated as the catcher. As he braces himself for impact, the entire team collapses in a heap of laughter when a tiny but mighty team member jumps into his arms.
Amidst the laughter and camaraderie, the retreat takes a reflective turn. The team gathers around a bonfire for a session of storytelling and sharing personal experiences. The unexpected challenge here is the vulnerability that comes with opening up to colleagues. However, as one team member shares a personal struggle and the group responds with empathy and support, the air becomes thick with solidarity. The retreat becomes a safe space where personal growth intertwines with team development.
The grand finale of the retreat is a talent show, where the team members are encouraged to showcase hidden talents or attempt something new. From impromptu stand-up comedy to surprising musical performances, the stage lights up with unexpected skills. The highlight of the show is when the reserved office accountant, known for crunching numbers rather than breaking into dance, wows the audience with a hip-hop routine that leaves everyone in stitches.
As the retreat concludes, the team gathers for a final reflection. The unexpected challenges and hilarious moments become cherished memories, serving as a reminder that beneath the professional veneer, everyone is human. The retreat has successfully broken-down barriers, strengthened bonds, and fostered a culture of openness and support.
In the weeks that follow, the team returns to the office rejuvenated and more connected than ever. The laughter shared during the retreat becomes the glue that holds them together during challenging projects and tight deadlines. The team-building retreat may have been comical and filled with unexpected challenges, but its impact on the team’s dynamics is no laughing matter – it’s the secret sauce to a stronger, more cohesive, and happier work environment.
Corporate Humor: The Food for Soul in Your Workplace
Here I come again with your weekly dose of laughter and fun to break the monotony of a 9 to 5 grind. A bit of laughter can make your day! It does for a lot of us, so it will hopefully do for you too. If you do not have the Acquired Amusement Deficiency Syndrome (AADS), you would love to read my posts. A job on someone else’s premises often feels like you are imprisoned behind invisible bars. It seems as if you have taken an oath to surrender your freedom with the squeaking sound of your access card and you are now a bound slave of your KPIs until you swipe your card to end the day.
Here a little laughter can make you feel relieved and people who have slowly relinquished this habit for pressure have been a victim of AADS. You will find such people in plenty in the corporate lobbies. They look like a happy hybrid of robots and bulldogs without the lace. Apart from AADS, they might also have diabetes, hypertension, heart blockage, and a few others. It is late in life that they realize they have not used the forty-three muscles of their faces at all which can inflate their liabilities and hospitalization bills. This is when they try to protrude their esophagus out and try practicing the most natural response, laughter, by getting into laughing clubs. Reading my articles and browsing my comic strips can save you from such hazards that your environment superimposes on you.
In an attempt to keep the mood light and make life feel easy, jokes and humor are the best of your companions. You would agree with me that the corporate world is full of idiosyncrasies and eccentric practices. More often than not, big corporations are more or less like a nation where they find it hard to keep a balance between the good and beautiful with the evil and ugly. This leads to queer policies and programs.
A productive interplay of human behavior gives rise to such bizarre conditions that it’s sometimes difficult to even breathe. This art of breathing and making others breathe where there are throat-choking and suffocating forces in play is precisely called organizational behavior. They employ scholars of organizational behaviour in their Human Resource Development departments who eventually also get transformed into veritable robots in just a few years. I prefer not to advocate sophisticated methods of provoking amusement and laughter. Just read my articles and go through my office comics. Somewhere you may find yourself too in one of those situations and characters who are my colleagues and accomplices. And who can say? Maybe you can laugh at yourself and can turn out to be the Duke of Desk Jokes or the Sultan of Satire!
See you next week! Till then, laugh and make others feel happier. You can of course browse through our corporate comics and amuse yourself. Share our office cartoons and comic arts with others to spread happiness.
Chucklingly Yours,
Norman & Ozi
