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Monday, April 1, 2013

April Fools' Day

For some reason, I have never embraced April Fools’ Day.   I am not really into practical jokes; although I am reminded by my wife that I have “that Black Irish sense of humor,” which is not necessarily a good thing.  As a kid, I remember my mother coming into my bedroom to wake me up and asking if I thought that we would have school that day since it snowed all night.  After she saw how excited I was, she would then say “April Fool” while she pulled up the shade to reveal what would be a beautiful sunny Spring morning.  I think that I fell for that every year as I was always hoping for no school under any circumstances. 

Rolling the clock forward to today, I read an article on making sure that as leaders we keep April Fools’ Day pranksters from crossing the line.  Someone had to write an article on April Fools’ guidelines for leaders, really?  OK, now that I piqued your curiosity, here are the guidelines for us leaders from ManageBetterBiz:

Choose the right victim – don’t select new employees or a boss without a sense of humor.
Keep a lighthearted tone – never humiliate a colleague.
Be open about your role – if you are the prankster, own up to it; if you can’t own up to it, don’t do it.
Think safety first – don’t damage anything or hurt anyone.
Avoid sexual humor – this is a no-brainer; too much at risk.

So, there you have it; an actual article on how to encourage your employees to be effective pranksters on April Fools’ Day.  Enjoy your day.

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