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Bring Your Dog to Work Day, every day?
I often get asked, “What kind of office do you work in?” My typical response is that I work in a brownstone in Boston’s South End with good people who do good work… and I get to bring my dog in with me every day.
“YOU WHAT!?”
That final detail always pushes them over the edge. Nobody can believe (especially if they’ve met the 90-pound beast that is my dog, Dylan) my pet comes into the office every day with me.
Hard worker, isn’t he?
It’s an absolute pleasure having him with me every day at the office. If I worked in a large company, or a company with less flexible ideas about workspace, I would most likely not be bringing Dylan bounding through the front door.
So how does this seemingly small (yet in reality, HUGE) benefit of bringing our dogs to the office affect the actual work that gets produced? I actually have a couple theories:
A workplace that embraces who we are as a whole is a happy workplace. Many offices allow you to put up photos in your cubicle and check your Facebook page now and then — but the rest of the time, your life and personality take a backseat to your daily responsibilities. Because we’re a creative, dynamic group at Sametz Blackstone, the lines between who we are and what we do are more blurry by intention — we’re encouraged to bring our unique personality, perspective and experience (not to mention our dogs!) to the table every single day.
This holistic approach and embrace of who we are fosters a genuine excitement for what we do each day — and that excitement translates into the kind of creative, fresh work our clients are seeking.
When the chips are down, a wagging tail offers a much-needed boost. When my colleagues and I are having a particularly bad day or week, we have these cheerful, energetic furry support systems to keep our spirits up. (Dylan makes sure he’s in the middle of every review at every desk down here on the Digital Media floor.) They outdo coffee as a re-motivator any day of the week.
Ultimately, while having dogs nearby is only a part of our culture, it’s emblematic of our approach: we believe that the best breeding ground for inspiration is one where people have the freedom to create an environment they truly enjoy.
Without exaggerating, I can honestly say that the dogs have become an important part of the team, and a necessary part of our routine each day (though we all have to work very hard to keep Roger’s dog Knightley away from our bagels and drinks during our monthly Bagels + Schmear…)
I love bringing Dylan to work with me, and he definitely boosts my morale when I spend a long day behind a desk. But I’m probably making you jealous at this point. So I’ll stop.
(But you’re welcome to come see me, Dylan, and the rest of us anytime!)
What do you love about your work environment? What do you think would improve it?
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[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Meg Fowler, Cars4Causes, Tamsen McMahon, Alyssa Jones, Alyssa Jones and others. Alyssa Jones said: RT @Sametz: .@dirkler on the @Sametz dog-friendly culture — & how we get by with a little help from our furry friends. http://bit.ly/caRO65 [...]