When you work hard and work in an intense environment with high goals it’s important to have a sense of humor. I’m fortunate to be part of an awesome team full of smart and hard working people. There’s a lot of diversity on our team. We use humor a lot to deal with the stress of managing many moving parts and to keep things fun.
It usually starts with a serious job related question. Then someone answers with a sarcastic comment. Then another. And things spiral quickly into pretty insane riffing. We feed off of each other’s jokes until we’re all laughing together. At this point I usually ask “is there a gas leak?” And for a few minutes we are transported from the job and are connecting as people. It’s a pleasure to work hard with my teammates but also to share in these moments of release.
Laughter and playful poking fun are great reminders not to take ourselves too seriously. And we like each other. So the joking is playful and kind hearted. There’s love there. And respect.
The best teams I’ve ever been on have been a balance of very hard work and equally hard play. There’s a level of trust that builds when you’ve been sitting next to someone fighting their way through a 6000 meter erg test or whatever your team does. You know what they’re going through because you’ve been through it yourself. And you root for them. For their success. And afterwards there’s nothing better than laughing about the crazy things we do.
This kind of dynamic is precious. It’s a unique combination of timing and energy and intimacy. And when it’s really good it allows for the expanding or contracting and changing of the team over time. People come and go but the core connection remains.
I love sharing these moments with teammates. Making them laugh. Remembering that we aren’t just our jobs. And that we are all on this insane ride together.
