Tip 10: Have fun!
You can work hard and still have fun. In fact, fun is part of being successful - and keeps you focused, more relaxed and motivated.
And if you're having fun it's proof you're doing something you love - and that alone is worth it.
As fun relates to aligning Marketing and Sales teams: laugh, joke, have fun! Just keep it clean :)
One of my bosses showed me this YouTube video and I LOL - seriously, tears...from laughing so hard. It's work appropriate and the timing was random, after a long week, on a Friday afternoon which made it even funnier. It was definitely a great way to end the week - smiling and having fun.
Marketing and Sales teams can have fun communicating, working and collaborating. And it doesn't always have to be "team building, off site, costly ideas". You just have to have a sense of humor and creative mind - Sales and Marketing people always are!!
Here are some examples of how you can have fun in an office, making someone smile and maybe get an office "fun chain" started (perhaps a competition to see how creative and competitive people can be - maybe even award a prize for the best marketing/sales team collaboration and creativity):
Add a note to a printer, computer, phone, microwave with "Voice Activated" - and wait for the yelling to begin
Sales: Bring in donuts for the office - when the box is opened it's fresh fruits or vegetables
Marketing: Send a lead to your salesperson with the information of a random person that you know and have that person "role play" the "yes to everything" or "no to everything" prospect
Sales: For every person in Marketing that you meet with for a day or when you visit the office find something that's organized (book shelf, photos, desk, wall pictures) and mess them up just a little and see how long it takes them to notice
Marketing: Good for a remote employee...Tell your salesperson you had new marketing materials printed for them and have all of them with cat images in place of the actual images. Then still have the actual items printed so it's not a wasted trip.
Richard Branson and Pit Bull share in this article with MSNBC why having fun at work is a critical ingredient for success. There are many people who have fun along their journey to success, whatever their version of success is. So are you having fun? Why or why not?
Share your stories and comment below on what you've experienced!
NEXT on the reading list: Marketing & Sales Alignment and Why It's Important