So, it's Friday, and you get to work thinking....hmmmm, ya know, it has been a great week and I really appreciate what my team has done and I want to do something special for them. And perhaps you did the Friday is Pie Day and you want to shake it up a bit. Maybe everyone has been taking this just a tad bit too seriously lately and just need a little pick-me-up.

So, wander back to the days of yore, back in the days when you had not a care, or mortgage payment, in the world. The days of elementary school and create a "milk and cookie break" or "recess" for your staff.

This isn't so hard or complicated to pull together. Run to the local store and pick up a gallon of milk (chocolate preferred) and some cookies and surprise your staff this afternoon with a little break. Make sure you grab a pack of small cups, and some napkins!

Now, who can resist a milk and cookie break!

To add a little fun, grab some scraps of paper, have everyone write what their favorite kind of cookie is on it but leaving their name off, then throw them all into a hat. Have each team member write everyones name down on a piece of paper (or provide them with one) and then as the paper pieces with the cookie varieties are drawn out, read the type of cookie and have staff assign it to who they think wrote it and loves that kind of cookie. The team member who has the most correct, gets another cookie or some other type of a prize. Perhaps you choose their favorite cookie for your next milk and cookie break.

Do you have any idea what kind of cookies your team likes? Well after this, you would have a good idea, and maybe just learn a little something about your team in the process. Or find a new favorite cookie yourself.

Take time to relate to your team today in some type of fun and meaningful way!

So, you need a little Friday pickup for your staff? It has been a long week, and you want your staff to leave the office this week without heading directly for Monster.com or anxiously awaiting the Sunday Help Wanted ads to plan their exit strategy.

Why not deem "Friday is Pie Day!" While I didn't come up with this one on my own (snaps to Roger at Concordia) it is something that truly brings smiles to faces and the sugar buzz required to push you through the last day of the week.

You can safely figure 1 pie per 6-8 people (12 if you are stingy or have a very weight conscious office), and should easily be able to find something for $1 to $2 per person. Here are some ways you can shake it up, alternatives and options:

I recently attended the Bigger Small Talk Conference here in Fargo and day two of the festivities was all about finding your genius. I had longed to find my genius, hoping it was in there somewhere, and fearing that I was, perhaps, geniusless. Oh the horror of being sans genius for the rest of my life. Enter Dick Richards, author of "Is Your Genius at Work: 4 Key Questions to Ask Before Your Next Career Move."

So, as we begin the journey in our search for the holy genius grail, individuals were standing to declare that they had discovered their genius. Consisting of a Gerund (ing word) and a noun, people were slowly standing, trying on different genius' and seeing how they felt. Well, after a resumé which reads a little schizophrenic, and having ventured down different tangents and which ever path I was invited to travel, feeling a bit like Dorothy in the wizard of Oz, I was really hoping to find something that fit.  I felt like I have the tools that I need and enjoyed the characters and experiences the yellow brick road had provided, I just need to find my way home to my genius.

So as about a safe third of the attendees had finished standing and declaring their genius, some more confidently than others, I chose to stand and share what I had discovered. I stood and declared that my genius was in "engineering experiences" to which Dick responded, "nope, that isn't it" and as I described what it is that I enjoy doing, what I do without even being asked or paid, words that I don't know that I had ever uttered, crossed my lips and resonated more strongly in me than anything in a long time. "Creating Synergy," he declared to be my genius! Yep, that feels good, really good. So I scribble it on my name badge and try it on for size. Removing the "engineering experiences" which fit, but felt a bit like the 80's shoulder pads I SO loved. At the time, seemed like a good idea, but in reality, a bit big and cumbersome, and a bit out of proportion. Now with my genius was written in ruby red Sharpie, there was no place like my genius "home."

 So, why Creating Synergy? I think it stems from the middle child "can't we all just get along" syndrome. I always seem to find my way into the middle of people and situations, trying to make everyone feel a part of the team, feeling good about themselves and their work, and collaborating to create something bigger together than could evolve in their individual realms. Case and point, my dream for this site was a place where others come come and contribute and learn, more than just me, but a group of friends. I am energized by the process of brainstorming, and finding new ways to look at old problems, and coming up with new solutions. Finding new ways to infuse technology to ease old struggles. And creating visual synergy as well, matching the style and collateral of a company to its culture, making sure that interior and exterior are one.

So, in the spirit of Creating Synergy, I have decided to add another category to my blog in which I share tips and techniques I have found over my years of being an employee and a manager to help prevent burnout, which I have seen and lived too many times. You will find those tips on the home page and then also archived in the left navigation as well.

Please join me on my new yellow brick road and if you have a tip you would like to share, I would love to hear and share it. You will find a number of things out there, but what I hope to share, are the fun and creative and inventive that those even on a tight budget can employ. Here's hoping you find that yellow brick road to your very own genius and know that "There's no place like home, there's no place like home!"