How well are you doing with catching yourself heading toward the pit of doom? You can borrow my 3-foot ring toss kit anytime.

My dad, Bob Morris, invented “cool.” If you ever met him, you know exactly what I mean. He rarely got excited or emotional in any way because he was just too cool.

We’ve all heard of working smart, but what about working fun?

Using fun to relieve tension or shift a conversation is a powerful leadership tactic you can use with yourself, family, friends, colleagues.

If we are having fun in what we are doing, we are going to be more motivated to complete the task, be more engaged, and relieve stress.

What distinguished the fun work from the not-so-much?

1. I worked for and with people who were engaged; they cared about the company and understood how they could contribute to its success.

2. People cared about each other; it’s unrealistic to expect that everyone in a company will be friends, but demonstrated compassion makes an enormous difference.

3. Fun work environments were safe work environments; people felt safe to speak up and to both voice and try new ideas.

4. We felt heard. Our opinions were solicited and acknowledged.

5. We were proud of our success and our ability to function as a high-performing team.

6. Laughter; while serious about our work, people felt comfortable cracking jokes and having fun together.