Workplaces shouldn't be all work and no play. A workplace where team members have fun can actually be much more productive. Some employers might snort at the idea of fun in the workplace. It's an understandable attitude. However, it's also a big mistake, as they risk losing the loyalty and enthusiasm of their team members.

All workplaces at some stage face difficult, brain-taxing and sometimes back-breaking situations with heaps of frustration, long hours, and short breaks. In this case, you would want to try to make work fun for your team members. They need to be able to joke around and create a good atmosphere for themselves. Let them do it, and they'll be likely to work their hearts out. Stop them, and they're likely to turn up late, find excuses for slacking off, or even go off to work for another company, leaving you in the lurch.

The buttoned-down boss of the fifties and sixties is a dinosaur. To be a good boss these days, you need to understand the equation of "fun workplace equals happy team members equals increased productivity", and know how to stay in control without appearing to. In the US, companies now advertise fun as a perk, and have been for some time. According to myprimetime.com, job applicants "rank a great work environment second only to pay and benefits."

People are thinking: "If you can't guarantee me a job next week, at least give me a compelling reason why I should give my best today." Sure, they might turn up on time and do their jobs, but why should they put in a special effort for you if you might have to sack them next month? They'll only do it if they love working for you. And they'll only love working for you if - as Bradford Swift wrote in Human Resources magazine - you have created "a workplace that is like a playground of excitement and ongoing growth."

Okay, let's face it. Some jobs will never be fun. Some jobs will never even be interesting. They just have to be done. The job you offer might be one of them. How do you get around that?

First, realize that fun in the workplace is about making the work you do fun or letting people do this for themselves. At another level, it's about boosting creativity and problem solving, and fostering teamwork. If you can't make the job itself fun, you can at least foster a fun work environment.

Sometimes, you don't have to do anything - your team members will already be doing it. Watch the way they might joke around while they're working. You'll probably notice they're working very efficiently and having a good time doing it. Of course, any joking around has to be appropriate and within limits. Any form of "fun" at the expense of other people's dignity or well-being is not acceptable.

That proviso aside, Benita Collings, trainer and writer with Corporate Trends magazine, says it's "a proven fact that laughing releases endorphins and makes you feel great. People who feel good are generally happy in their work and work more productively."

Humorist and business consultant, Jeff Albers, notes that happy people are healthy people. On his website, he writes: "Along with a good sense of humor comes laughter which.generates an environment that is emotionally and morally healthy.which, in turn, reduces stress and blood pressure." Albers noticed fewer mistakes in companies that had a fun atmosphere and concluded this was because team members felt more comfortable. He also noticed that such companies enjoyed a steady increase in sales.

To get some fun into your workplace, try the following:

• Schedule frequent but affordable social events such as movie nights, barbecues, picnics, or paintball skirmishes.
• Play games now and again. Turn hallways into makeshift bowling alleys. Erect a basketball hoop in the car park and hold lunchtime tournaments.
• Distribute small toys. Research has shown that manipulating toys frees the mind to be creative.
• Have a "role reversal" day where team members can do each other's jobs instead of their own. This can foster a greater sense of respect and teamwork among your team members.
• Let everyone go home early once a month, or take them out to lunch.

You want your team members to enjoy coming to work. For, more often than not, happy teams are also successful teams.