When did work become such...well...work? It seems that because organizations are operating in a leaner and meaner fashion since the Great Recession, most leaders have become more obsessed with their team's productivity. Most leaders assume that fun and productivity are mutually exclusive.

As a result, work has become phenomenally dreary for many employees. And some operate under the assumption that weekdays are for "work" and weekends are for "fun." My good friend Andy calls Sunday afternoons the "long, dark teatime of the soul." 

Hopefully, the following news doesn't shock you: When employees are having fun, they are happier and more productive. According to research by David Abramis, “fun guru” and professor at Cal State Long Beach, fun improves communication and enhances team spirit. It also reduces boredom, conflict, and absenteeism.

The most effective leaders blur the line between "productive time" and "fun time." The advantage of adding a pinch of fun to day-to-day activities is that it doesn't require any more time or energy than you might have devoted otherwise—and you can get the benefits that fun provides.

I was once facilitating a meeting for the vice president of an energy company. The meeting had been challenging; they were reorganizing their department and the decisions were tough. At the end of a very long day, the leader stood up and said, "That's it. We need sugar." She paged her assistant, who bound into the room to find the team chanting, "We want ice cream! We want ice cream!" You should have seen how happy everyone was when her assistant returned with her arms full of packaged ice cream cones.

Perhaps it was the sugar, but the team was able to find a new store of energy to end the day on a productive note. The moral of this story: Sometimes you just need to send out for ice cream.

Here are some suggestions for livening up your day-to-day operations:

Food is usually a slam dunk. If you're holding your employees hostage in a long meeting, buy them food! Taking note of allergies and diets, get creative. Or make it a potluck.

Do something fun in every meeting. Whether it's an icebreaker or just informal time to catch up with each other over a cup of coffee, carve out this time. It's important.

Have a laugh. During the course of your day-to-day work, laugh at least once an hour when interacting with your team. If you don’t, ask yourself, "Do I need to lighten up a little?"

Gamify. Turn normal tasks into a game. Gamification is the use of activities to engage people in a task not traditionally thought of as a game. Simple examples of gamification are the "achievement badges" used on sites like Foursquare, or the "seller rating star" used on eBay. At work, what if you held a contest for the person who generates the most ideas in a brainstorming session—and you buy the winner lunch?

Finally, if your idea of fun is letting your employees guess their performance appraisal rating, ask for help. Enlist the help of one of your most fun team members. Make it a development opportunity for them to perform a "fun audit." 

Good luck and have fun out there!