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Laughter is the Best Medicine

The world is so serious right now. Between world events, political turmoil, and the stress of everyday life, people are serious. Workforce development is not any different. Many programs are concerned about their future funding. While that stress is programmatic, individual workforce professionals are feeling the pressures of working with people multiple barriers, meeting performance goals, and the constant pressure of providing service to others.

By Friday, everyone in workforce development is tired. Individual professionals need to relax and laugh. We do funny things in workforce development. Why not laugh about them?
 
·        How many workforce professionals work in an office where the front doors are kept unlocked, but the restrooms need a key to get in?
 
·        How many workforce professionals work in a program that insists that every last detail is entered in the data management system only to be worried about paper files when auditors come to visit?
 
Workforce development’s systematic funny quirks are fueled by bureaucracy. There are laws about accessibility, yet the mandatory government forms are written in print so small that their words are only assessable to mice. The printed Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act is a feat to read with tiny print and hundreds of pages. Yet, there is another government law about paperwork reduction.  All government double talk.
 
There are many examples out there ranging from funny co-workers, customers, or systems if we all just looked a little harder. At least once this week laugh. You are funny, laugh at yourself, your colleagues, your friends, or family. Laugh at systems or bureaucracy. Not everything is serious all the time. Find your joy in quirky puns and let a laugh out.
~Karen Cirincione
Twitter: @kcirincione

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