That word is fun. In corporate America—especially in audit, risk, and finance—it’s often treated like a swear word. A distraction. A sign you’re not serious about the work.
I used to agree. Early in my management career, I thought fun at work was a waste of time. A nice-to-have that got cut when budgets tightened. I was deeply skeptical—convinced that productivity and levity were inversely correlated. Then 2020 happened. And I had to completely reimagine what leadership could be.
Now? I’m a believer. And I won’t apologize for it.
The COVID Catalyst
When my team went remote, everything changed overnight. No more hallway conversations. No more reading the room. Suddenly, I was leading through a screen, and the traditional playbook—command, control, measure—felt hollow. People were scared. Their routines were upended. The usual corporate energy was gone.
I realized I had a choice: I could enforce discipline and formality even harder, or I could try something radically different. So I did. We opened calls with genuine check-ins instead of diving straight into business. We laughed when technology failed. We celebrated wins—even small ones—with actual enthusiasm. We shared stories about our pandemic lives. We made intentional space for levity.
And something remarkable happened.
The Unexpected Benefit: Near Self-Management
Because my team felt safe with each other—because there was real connection and genuine laughter alongside the work—something unexpected occurred: they started solving problems without me. They engaged each other, asked hard questions, iterated on solutions, and came back with answers. They weren’t waiting for my approval or my direction. They were collaborating.
The team moved toward near self-management. Not chaos, not lack of accountability—but genuine autonomy rooted in psychological safety and mutual trust. They knew I had their backs. They knew they had each other’s backs. So they could take risks, make decisions, and escalate only what truly needed my input.
And for me? The unexpected gift was time. Suddenly, I wasn’t stuck in the tactical weeds of every decision. I had mental space for strategic thinking. For planning. For the board conversations and enterprise risk work that actually needed my attention. Fun didn’t cost me time—it freed up time.
That’s when I stopped being skeptical and started being a believer. I now like the F word at work. A lot.
Why This Actually Works
Here’s what I learned: when people genuinely like and trust each other, they engage with the work—and with each other—differently. They’re not performing. They’re not waiting for permission. They’re thinking critically, collaborating honestly, and taking ownership.
This matters enormously in audit, risk, and governance work. In those fields, you need people who will voice concerns, challenge assumptions, ask tough questions, and own solutions. You can’t legislate that with control. You create it with connection. With psychological safety. With fun.
When your team is genuinely engaged with each other, they’re also more engaged in solving complex problems. The audit findings are sharper. The risk assessments are more honest. The solutions are more creative. And they get there without needing you in every conversation.
The Uncomfortable Truth: You Might Not Be Good at This
Here’s something nobody talks about: not every leader is naturally good at creating fun. Some of us are wired for process, systems, and structure. We bring discipline and rigor. That’s valuable. But it doesn’t create connection.
If you recognize yourself in that description, here’s the good news: you don’t have to become someone you’re not. Look at your team. There’s likely someone who is naturally good at this. Someone who brings levity, who builds relationships, who knows how to make people feel welcome. That person is gold.
Lean on them. Give them space to lead the team culture. Value that skill set publicly. Make it clear that bringing people together is not soft—it’s strategic. It’s part of your team’s competitive advantage.
And if you look around your team and don’t see anyone like that? That’s a signal. It’s something to think about in your next hire. You need diversity of skill sets—not just technical expertise, but also people who naturally create connection and engagement. Someone who makes it easy for others to show up as their whole selves.
The Economics of Leadership
Think about the economics of your time. You have limited bandwidth. Every hour you spend in tactical problem-solving is an hour you’re not spending on strategy, board relationships, or enterprise risk planning. That’s not just a time suck—it’s an opportunity cost.
Organizations that get this—that intentionally invest in psychological safety and real connection—end up with teams that are more productive, more innovative, and far more scalable. Leaders have time to lead. Teams have space to own their work. Everyone wins.
Your Move
If you’re leading a team in audit, risk, or governance—remote or hybrid or in-person—ask yourself:
- How much of my time is spent solving problems my team could solve?
- How much real connection and trust is actually there?
- Are people bringing their whole selves, or just the buttoned-up version?
- Do they laugh together?
The F word—fun—might be the most underrated leadership leverage point in your toolkit. It’s not about bean bag chairs or forced happy hours. It’s about creating the conditions where people feel safe enough to collaborate authentically, take risks, and own outcomes. And it’s about recognizing that you might not be the one to spark that—and that’s okay. Diversity of skill sets, including the ability to engage and build culture, is how teams thrive.
Start there. Watch what happens when your team has fun with each other. Watch the self-management kick in. Watch your own bandwidth open up for the strategic thinking your organization actually needs.
The best leaders don’t control their teams into high performance. They create the conditions for teams to manage themselves.
0 Comments