Okready or not, I’d like to plant a tune and possibly even an image in your head: Do you remember Cyndi Lauper’s hit “Girls Just Want to Have Fun!” from the early 1980s? The song is so upbeat and infectious that you can’t help but feel better while listening to it. The video for the song shows Cyndi and her friends dancing in the streets, having a party, and generally having a great time. Got the picture? That looks like a lot of fun doesn’t it? And who doesn’t love to have fun (would you admit it if you don’t)? But, the key question is: are you having enough fun?

We all contend with plenty of stressors every day, which can make it difficult to relax and really enjoy ourselves on a regular basis. I like this definition of stress: any factor that threatens the health of the body or has an adverse effect on its functioning.  To get a better handle on your current situation, it is helpful to become more aware of what causes you stress.

Ask yourself questions, such as:

• What is stressful to me?

• How does stress affect me?

• When am I most vulnerable to stress?

• When is stress good for me?

It’s been said that “awareness causes that space where choice exists.” So, as you become more aware about the specifics of stress in your life, you can make better decisions about how to minimize it and its effects. Stress often comes from focusing on what makes you feel BAD; your fears and limiting beliefs. Understanding this, why not focus on what makes you feel GOOD? Fun is a great counter-balance to stress…for both your mental and physical well-being.

In his The Eight Irresistible Principles of Fun video, Michael Bungay Stanier lays forth some wonderful ideas for having more fun in your life.

1. Get focused: Stop hiding who you really are. It’s important to understand who you are and what you’re all about. Then, let is shine!
2. Get focused: Start being intensely selfish. Don’t waste your time on anything other than what is most important to you.
3. Be creative: Stop following the rules. It’s no longer about what you can’t do; it’s about what you can do.
4. Be creative: Start scaring yourself. Explore the edges; seek out and have adventures.
5. Use your wisdom: Stop taking it all so damn seriously. Lighten up – this too will pass.
6. Use your wisdom: Start getting rid of the crap. What’s holding you down and getting in your way?
7. Take action: Stop being busy. Just because you’re going flat out, doesn’t mean you’re on the right track.
8. Take action: Get creative and start something. Lou Holtz said “When all is said and done, a lot more is said than done.” Don’t let that be you.

So let’s all get busy and start having more fun. I’m not implying that you should run outside and dance around with your friends like Cyndi Lauper did. But, on the other hand, if it works for you…go for it! What is fun is an individual thing: fun for one person may not be for another. Know what works for you…and take the time to have fun as often as possible!

Now, I challenge you to get Cyndi’s catchy tune out your head (“Girls just wanna, they just wanna have fun…”).

Intergenerational dialog is an issue for many organizations.

The boomers have different expectationswork habits, life goals, communication strategies, technology experiences and attitudes than Gen x (born 1963-78), and Gen Y (born 1979-98) is even more different. Each generation is a product of the educational, social, family structure, political, economic times in which it grew up. So, of course, Each generation is different which makes workplaces, where they all try to work together, a bit trying at times.

Since we’re at the beginning of the school year, I thought I would pass this along just to highlight the difference in life experiences. Most students entering college for the first time this fall—the Class of 2014—were born in 1992. For these students, Benny Hill, Sam Kinison, Sam Walton, Bert Parks, and Tony Perkins have always been dead. Each year, Beloit College puts together a list of "cultural touchstones" that affect the lives of students entering college in 2011. The faculty uses it as a reminder to be aware of dated references. Here are some of our favorites:

1. Few in the class know how to write in cursive.
2. Email is just too slow, and they seldom if ever use snail mail.
3. Al Gore has always been animated.
4. “Caramel macchiato” and “venti half-caf vanilla latte” have always been street corner lingo.
5. With increasing numbers of ramps, Braille signs, and handicapped parking spaces, the world has always been trying harder to accommodate people with disabilities.
6. John McEnroe has never played professional tennis.
7. Clint Eastwood is better known as a sensitive director than as Dirty Harry.
8. Doctor Kevorkian has never been licensed to practice medicine.
9. Fergie is a pop singer, not a princess.
10. They never twisted the coiled handset wire aimlessly around their wrists while chatting on the phone.
11. Leasing has always allowed the folks to upgrade their tastes in cars.
12. Unless they found one in their grandparents’ closet, they have never seen a carousel of Kodachrome slides.
13. Computers have never lacked a CD-ROM disk drive.
14. Czechoslovakia has never existed.
15. Second-hand smoke has always been an official carcinogen.
16. J.R. Ewing has always been dead and gone. Hasn’t he?
17. Rock bands have always played at presidential inaugural parties.
18. Beethoven has always been a good name for a dog.
19. Having hundreds of cable channels but nothing to watch has always been routine.
20. They've always been able to blast off with the Sci-Fi (SYFY) Channel.

You can view the complete list at www.beloit.edu/mindset.  Are you guilty of being "dated" in your dealings with the younger generation? These folks will soon hit the workforce so be aware of language you may want to change. Read more about intergenerational dialog in the workplace at http://danceofbusiness.com/drivingir/facilitation/intergenerational-dialogue and leave a comment on how generational differences have made a difference in your workplace or home environment.

A man owned a small farm.

The IRS claimed he was not paying proper wages to his staff and sent an investigator out to interview him.

'I need a list of your employees and how much you pay them' demanded the investigator.

'Well,' replied the business owner, 'there's my farm hand who's been with me for 3 years.  I pay him $200 a week plus free room and board.'

'The cook has been here for 18 months, and I pay her $150 per week plus free room and board.'

'Then there's the half-wit. He works about 18 hours every day and does about 90% of all the work around here. He makes about $10 per week, pays his own room and board, and I buy him a bottle of whiskey every Saturday night. He also sleeps with my wife occasionally.'

'That's the guy I want to talk to ...the half-wit,' says the agent.

'That would be me,' replied the farmer.

Maybe you don’t own a farm but your business seems to suck all your effort, time, and attention, to the point where you wonder why? What’s the return on this investment? Or maybe you don’t even ask that question any more because you’re stuck in the habit of being active rather than productive.

If you want to stop being a half-wit about how you’re spending your life, then maybe you want to stop for a moment and re-evaluate the situation. There are plenty of alternatives for investing your time, money and energy that could bring you better ROI. Why don’t you go to a seminar that talks about planning a change? Just so happens there is just such a seminar happening on Wednesday August 11^th at 5:30pm. Here is the information and sign up page. http://danceofbusiness.com/drivingir/creating-a-business-plan I hope to see you there.

But meanwhile, please leave a comment about the life of a half-witted business person who you see looking out your window or in the mirror.

It’s vacation time.  Are you planning yours?  Here are some fun ideas.

Take a look at some of the hairy photos in the video below.

After viewing these picturesthe risks inherent in business are pretty tame.