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April 1st is popularly known as April Fools’ Day and many people, all over the world enjoy and celebrate foolishness and fun by pranking others. The origin of this day is unclear, and some say it is as a result of the calendar changing from the Julian calendar to the Gregorian calendar which resulted that the New Year moving from April 1st to January 1st. Some missed the memo and continued to celebrate New Year on 1st April and were the subject of pranks and ridicule by those who celebrated months before them. This resulted in loads of laughter, and nobody took offense, but rather enjoyed the foolishness and had fun.
During times like these, we could all do with a good laugh and April Fools’ Day is the perfect occasion to get some “belly laughs” going. It has been medically proven that laughter enhances the intake of oxygen-rich air, it stimulates the heart, lungs, muscles and also increases the endorphins released by the brain. It is a “no-brainer”, excuse the pun! Be it at home or in the workplace, it is time to get those pranks going. It is however advisable to make sure that your workplace is open to this and that management is onboard.
Employers should encourage fun in the office, and they can be the ones to initiate this. Afterall, happy staff leads to better results. How can management do this you may well ask? Well, there are many ideas so please feel free to choose one or a few.
Prank the entire office by leaving a cake or doughnut box at reception, with a sign that says “Free cupcakes/doughnuts. Take 1”. When the box is open, the staff will find fruit or veggies instead. However, when they get to their desks, the real deal doughnut or cupcake is there with a little April Fools note.
Send out an office email to all, informing them that they are “all required to work Saturdays for the next 3 months”. Sit back and watch the show!
Leave a colour changing mug on each staff members desk with a note and instructions. Instructions will tell the recipient to make a hot drink and follow the wording on the mug. Once the mug is filled with a hot drink, a message will be revealed on the mug. The message will be an instruction which the staff member will have to follow. So, you may very well have a bunch of people, barking like dogs, jumping up and down, crying like a baby or heading over to their colleague to tickle them. This is sure to create some fun in the workplace.
An easier workplace prank is to schedule a fire drill, just as the staff are about to take lunch. Just watch their smiles fade, but reappear once you shout, “April Fool”.
How about sending out a message the week before April Fools’ Day, telling all employees to come dressed in their craziest outfit on the 1st of April. This will create some fun in the workplace and will definitely lead to loads of laughter.
If this cannot work for a corporate company, then employees can have a box of weird and wonderful hats, wigs, and other accessories which staff can help themselves to as they arrive at work. What they take, they have to wear for the entire day. A photographer can be hired for the morning to take some pics of everyone in their crazy attire and these photos can be shared via social media to create a buzz, brand awareness and also LOADS of fun.
I personally love April Fools’ Day and have myself been caught out a number of times. Many years ago, when I was a lot younger, I saw something on TV which really caught my eye! This intrigued me as I really did NOT know that spaghetti grew on trees! Well, you can only imagine the fall out at home when I spoke to my brother about this newfound knowledge! But it was just so convincing!
There are many well-known brands which also take the opportunity to prank their customers. In 2019 McDonalds introduced the “Glow in the dark” burger. Starbucks introduced their fans to their new group of stores called Pupbucks. Pupbucks would be exclusively for dogs. They even got a fake employee of Pupbucks to speak of her experience working there.
Then they stuck a cup of coffee on the bonnet of a car and pranked the people they rode past. Take a look and have a laugh.
“Here cometh April again, and as far as I can see, the world hath more fools in it than ever”. -Charles Lamb
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