
Fun must be a big
element in your business strategy. No one should have a job they don't
enjoy. If you don't wake up energized and excited about tackling a new set
of challenges, then you might be in the wrong job.
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Never allow your company to take itself too seriously.
"As I went to bigger pieces of
GE, I found bigger
bureaucracies, layers and all that stuff and it
wasn't friendly," writes
Jack Welch. "Business was very
serious-turf-boxes. Business isn't that. Business is
ideas and
fun and
excitement and celebrations, all those things."
Ultimately,
Welch's book Winning
is about making business more fun: “There are several
themes you’ll hear again and again: the
team with the best players wins,
so find and retain the best players; don’t overbrain things to the point
of inaction; no matter what part of a business you’re in,
share learning
relentlessly; have a
positive attitude and spread it around; never let
yourself be a victim; and for goodness sake – have fun.”
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Take swings, have
fun. Welch's "Authentic Leadership Model" included such
success factors and traits as having a sense of humor,
having fun, and having infectious enthusiasm. Welch's ultimate
advice to those who want to be managers: “Err on the side of the bold. …
Take swings, have fun.”
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Find job that challenges
you.
"Seek out jobs and assignments that
challenge your mind. You will never find out what you are truly capable
unless you have job that
inspires you."2 When asked to give
one important piece of advice for the new generation of managers, Welch
answered, "Do your thing. I mean have fun. Do what you like. If you're
doing something you don't like, get the hell out of it. Go live and do
things and reach for the moon all the time. Have fun doing it and don't
be afraid. Don't live in a box."
-
Remove anything that
makes people less excited about going to work.
Business should be about
passion
and
winning and
creating new things. It doesn't have to be about
slogging through bureaucracy and approvals and all the other things that
make work so depressing.
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Celebrate success.
“Business is ideas and
fun and excitement and celebrations, and all those things.”
Business
has to be fun. For too many people, it's "just a job". Celebration is
also a great way to
energize
an organization. A
CEO's job is to make
sure that his/her team is
having fun – while they're being productive.