Fun at work isn't just a bonus. It's the point.
This week on Hello Monday: Bree Groff, author of Today Was Fun, shares how small acts of mischief and embracing our humanity can transform the way we work.
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Okay, let’s talk about the relationship between Jim and Dwight on The Office. (If you’re part of the .0001% of people who have not yet seen this television series, well, you’re welcome.) I happened to be watching it toward the end of a cross-country flight, a day before I recorded this week’s show. Season 3, Episode 7: Branch Closing.
In this episode, Jim faxes Dwight from "Future Dwight" on stationery he stole before transferring to the Stamford branch. The fax contains a warning: "At 8:00 AM, the coffee will be poisoned." Dwight sprints across the office to bat the coffee out of Stanley’s hand in a panic, while Jim and the rest of us crack up.
It’s a classic early‑season prank that perfectly showcases the playful rivalry between Jim and Dwight, and I’d argue, captures exactly what makes The Office such an incredible magnet of a work environment. You will remember that Dunder Mifflin was a paper company. Its employees spend their days selling paper as computers and email render paper increasingly superfluous. The business is shrinking, the opportunity disappearing, and yet: it’s a good job, a good life. The Scranton branch of Dunder Mifflin is teeming with people who know how to care for each other, and take meaning from the relationships they have, not the paper they sell.
My hot take: We are all selling paper.
Maybe there are times where we feel entirely connected to the mission and the purpose of our employers. Maybe we are our own employers, with autonomy over the work we choose to do. Even so, focusing on the work is not what brings meaning and purpose to our days, and prevents the burnout that comes for so many of us. So what does?
My guest on the show this week is Bree Groff, author of the new book Today Was Fun: A Book About Work (Seriously). Bree has spent her career advising companies like Google, Microsoft, Pfizer on how to make work better. Her premise is simple and urgent: Work should feel good because that’s how we’re spending our lives.
Here’s how Bree puts it:
“We sometimes forget that we are more than our economic output. That our days are more than the input to some company's bottom line.”
It’s so easy to fall into the trap of equating productivity with value. Many of us were raised with one of two messages: Either work is supposed to be drudgery—and if you're lucky, you'll get paid enough to support your family. Or, work should be your calling, your passion, your identity. If it isn't, you’re doing something wrong.
What if the goal isn’t to grind or to glow, but simply to feel good?
Bree’s work is full of practical suggestions for how to do this. She talks about introducing micro-mischief—like rolling out a picnic blanket in the middle of the office and working from the floor. That tiny, playful disruption can shake up the rigidity of our routines and open up room for creativity.
I’m just going to tell you that that’s not me. I won’t be rolling out a picnic blanket. But I’ve got my own signature for what constitutes a prank, or shakes up the status quo. This episode is an invitation for me and for everyone paying attention to consider that how we spend our days (and who we spend our days with) is how we pass a life. How can we shift our focus away from the efficiency driven challenge of clearing our Slacks and hitting Inbox Zero and toward the goal of feeling–ACTUALLY FEELING—the fullness of our days?
Be sure to check out Office Hours!
We’ll be taking this conversation to Office Hours this week. You can find me and senior producer Sarah Storm right here on Wednesday afternoon at 3pm EST. We'll talk about the episode...and anything else that's on your mind!
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1wLoved this episode! Made me grateful for my coworkers.
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1wLoved this perspective! A great reminder that joy, mischief, and human connection at work aren’t distractions—they’re what make it meaningful.
Entrepreneur I Bestselling Author I TV Producer & Host I Keynote Speaker
1wSuch a good episode!