We Will Have Fun - Damn It! — by Dan Lynn

By Dan Lynn

In my experience, a company's culture typically reflects its owners or leadership. During the first 3 years of our start-up venture you could summarize the culture in one word - "Serious". Well, you really can't blame us. We had certainly taken a huge risk by quitting our jobs to start an Internet-related business in early 2000 (not exactly the best time to start a new Internet company). So, it wasn't about fun and games. We had a lot of people watching us. We had a lot to prove. The fear of failure was tremendous. And, if you know anything about us, you know that we refuse to lose.

So, we were serious. Man were we serious! Serious about building a great company. Serious about having an impact. Serious about executing with excellence. Serious about quality, process and measurement. Serious about not screwing up. "Fun" for us was being serious about hitting home runs for our clients.

In late 2003 we did our first annual employee survey. We were serious about getting better - so we wanted to use the survey to identify key areas for improvement. And what did we learn? Well, first we learned that we have a great company on our hands. A place where people love to work. A place where people are proud of the work they do, the clients we have, the quality we demand, the team we have built and the results we deliver for our clients. However, we also learned that the company wasn't fun. We didn't plan a lot of activities together. We didn't create opportunities to build relationships beyond work. We didn't facilitate activities to help release the day-to-day stress. At the end of the day, we didn't have much "fun".

Wow, that was eye opening. It's actually very important. I've been exposed to great young companies and I've learned that fun is a critical element to a successful company. It helps build and enhance relationships. It helps release stress. It stimulates innovation. Hell, after three years of building this thing, even I wanted to have some fun. However, the challenge is that I'm just not good at planning and coordinating the fun.

So, it sounds silly but we actually scheduled "fun". Someone more suited for the role volunteered to lead the effort. We created a "fun calendar" of activities and events - some during work hours and some after work hours, some paid for by the company and some paid for by the individuals. Over the next 12 months activities included - an omelet chef, a Halloween party with a pumpkin decorating contest, an afternoon at the movies, bowling, a masseuse, and more. We've had a lot of fun that year and beyond. Although it may have been forced to start, it emerged as an important element of our culture. We were then serious about hitting home runs for our clients and having fun. As a result, we were an even better company.