Quirky Ways to Engage Your Employees

When it comes to motivating and engaging with your employees, sometimes it takes more than asking them about their weekend. Many managers and company directors dodge the unconventional ways of motivating employees as it seems a little silly and can appear counter-productive. However, little do they know that these cheap, unorthodox and strange activities can have lasting benefits to the employees, the company, and the bottom-line!

1. Hold fun monthly contests between departments. 

This can range from the most creatively decorated area, an ultimate cook-off, through to who can stack the highest tower of Oreos. Don’t forget to reward the winning team!

2. Keep a running game! 

Place a game of Chess, Checkers or a quiz in the tea room, and keep everybody interacting instead of sitting in silence during their breaks.

3. Celebrate birthdays, holidays, and occasions.

Personally create little company gifts, or better yet, match departments to get them to organise a collective surprise for another team. Set some grounds rules, as well as a nominal budget per department, and let them be as creative as they want!

4. Get suggestions. 

Instead of trying to guess what your team wants, place little check-box slips with events and ideas and get all individuals to number what they want most.

5. Celebrate success!

Make a habit of celebrating the smallest of achievements. Secured a big client or important contract? Get a cake! Increased the base of email subscribers by 5%? Have some chocolate!

6. Survival simulation games.

If you are on a boat that breaks down and only have limited resources, how will your team cope? Situational simulations are great ways to get all members interacting with each other and thinking like a team.

7. Daggy-dress day. 

Get all members to wear one completely outrageous and hideous accessory to the office. Capture it with a camera and stick it up on a cork board. This is a sure way to get people to lighten up and crack a smile.

8. Fact of the day. 

Assign each member a day; ask them to find a fact and to write it up on the white-board in the morning.

9. Start the weekend sooner.

According to a survey conducted by British Airways, productivity levels rapidly decline at 2:39pm on a Friday. Make it clear to your employees that you don’t expect them to be as productive on a Friday afternoon, and they are free to leave if they wish (provided of course that they’ve completed the required tasks for the week!). This may lead to employees working harder and faster throughout the week in order to leave early on Friday afternoons.

10. Be weird and crazy. 

Blast ‘Eye of the Tiger’ from your office when you’re feeling unmotivated or ‘I Will Survive’ when teams are feeling tense. Foster a supportive work environment, and show that you trust that everyone can ‘bounce back’ from a rough day.

11. Scheduled breaks. 

These may seem counter-productive, but being tired causes people to be less productive and creative. Giving employees a break for a quick power-nap or to meditate allows people to rejuvenate, regain their energy, and be able to think more creatively.

There’s a whole list of things that haven’t been mentioned – but these are sure to get you started! Little fun changes in the workplace can help lift unwanted pressure off your workers, and create a more fun, productive, stress-free and creative environment. It builds the team up, allows them to be more supportive, to feel supported, and to stay motivated and committed to the company. If you can get your employees truly committed to the company, you can be sure to trust that they’ll do the best by you. 



Alignment between a company's culture and its employees is also essential to ensure that your staff are operating in an environment they feel comfortable in and can engage with. To work out whether the employees you hire have the potential to fit your company's culture, use a Psychometric Assessment! To find out more about how Psychometric tests can help your organisation see how Psychometric Assessments can help your hiring decisions. If you are interested in learning more about Psychometric Assessments, please speak with Dr. Gavin Didsbury or a consultant from our assessment partner PsychPress who provide a variety of psychometric assessment solutions. Please call on (03) 9670 0590 or email info@psychpress.com.au.

4 ways to reduce pre-Christmas stress for your staff

Christmas should be a time of peace, joy and love. However, if you’re not a child with endless holidays and gifts to look forward to, the lead up to this holiday can be a stressful time of year. Financial pressures from debts, gifts and celebrations tend to increase at this time. Family gatherings (or lack thereof) can lead to unhealthy anxiety, loneliness or conflict. To add to the mounting social pressures, work pressures accumulate as New Year deadlines approach.

The mental health (and general wellbeing) of your employees is vital to ensure their longevity as contributing and creative members of your team. It is also important to help your staff get through difficult times so your efforts and output (and let’s not forget employee satisfaction) do not suffer.

Here are 4 tips to motivate your team and safeguard their mental health at this time of year:

1.    Keep an eye out for red flags 

While it is normal to experience a degree of pressure and frustration at this time of year, it’s important to note when this may become a larger problem. If you notice that an employee appears sleep deprived, aggressive, anti-social, distracted or negative, it may be a sign that they are under an unreasonable amount of pressure. If you see someone acting out of character for a long period of time, let them know you’ve noticed that they’ve seemed a bit down and ask them how they are. 

2.    Review workloads

Stress occurs when our demands exceed our resources. Quite simply, your employees may not have enough time or the resources to get the job done. Pay close attention to establish whether the work that is being produced meets the standards that are normally achieved. This reduction in performance may occur due to under-staffing and over-loading rather than a lack of enthusiasm or competence. Communicate these concerns with the team and where necessary, give clients advance notice that deadlines may alter during a resource-restricted period.

3.    Say thank you

It cannot be overstated – a simple word of appreciation can motivate and encourage anyone. You don’t need to organise an elaborate event to thank work colleagues, as genuine personal encouragement can be enough to brighten their day. 

4.    Lead by example

If you feel yourself becoming burnt out, it will be difficult to ensure your team does not follow suit. Take some time to rest, spend time with family and engage in relaxing activities. Seek professional advice if needed and take some time over the New Year period to evaluate your life goals.


While Christmas is a stressful time of year for many, effective management of your staff, communicating openly with them and supporting those around you can have a snowball effect to put the peace, love and joy back into the workplace leading up to the festive season!

4 tips to handle pre-Christmas work stress

Christmas should be a time of peace, joy and love. However, if you’re not a child with endless holidays and gifts to look forward to, the lead up to this holiday can be a stressful time of year. Financial pressures from debts, gifts and celebrations tend to increase at this time. Family gatherings (or lack thereof) can lead to unhealthy anxiety, loneliness or conflict. To add to the mounting social pressures, work pressures accumulate as New Year deadlines approach.



The mental health (and general wellbeing) of you and your team is vital to ensure you are able to contribute creatively and productively. It is also important to to get through difficult times where your efforts and output (and let’s not forget satisfaction) may suffer.

Here are 4 tips to motivate you and your team to safeguard general mental health at this time of year:

1.    Keep an eye out for red flags 

While it is normal to experience a degree of pressure and frustration at this time of year, it’s important to note when this may become a larger problem. If a colleague (or yourself) appears sleep deprived, aggressive, anti-social, distracted or negative, this may be a sign that the stress is getting to them and their work.
If you see someone acting out of character for a long period of time, let them know you’ve noticed that they’ve seemed a bit down and ask them how things are going. It’s normal to feel the need to seek support at these times so don’t hesitate in speaking up and finding help where you can if you feel overwhelmed.

2.    Review workloads

Stress occurs when our demands exceed our resources. Quite simply, you may not have enough time or the resources to get the job done. Pay close attention to whether your efforts are sloppy or are being completed late, as this may occur due to under-staffing and over-loading rather than a lack of enthusiasm or competence. Communicate these concerns with the team and where necessary, give clients advance notice that deadlines may alter during a resource-restricted period.

3.    Say thank you

It cannot be overstated – a simple word of appreciation can motivate and encourage anyone. You don’t need to organise an elaborate event to thank work colleagues, as genuine personal encouragement can be enough to brighten their day. If you feel this is a little out of your hands, talk with your employer about your concerns over general stress levels and that their candid feedback and support could really help.

4.     Make a grand example

If you feel yourself nearing burnt out, it will be difficult to ensure that others around you do not follow suit. Take some time to rest, spend time with family and engage in relaxing activities. Seek professional advice if needed and take some time over the New Year period to evaluate your life goals.



While Christmas is a stressful time of year for many, effective management over communicating with and supporting those around you can have a snowball effective to put the peace, love and joy back into the festive season!