Today Was Fun
Book

Today Was Fun

A Book About Work (Seriously)

Bree Groff
Page Two Publishers, 2025
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Editorial Rating

8

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  • Engaging

Recommendation

You might not work for fun, but that doesn’t mean employment has to be joyless and grim. In this engaging read, senior consultant and former CEO Bree Groff seeks to shatter the cultural norms and mindsets that position work as a stressful chore. In a breezy and irreverent style, she presents rules for having fun in your work and work relationships — as well as for protecting yourself from overwork so you have time for other sources of happiness. Groff draws on her experience as a business leader, parent, and caregiver to advocate spending your life on moments that matter.

Summary

Embrace the mindset that work is fun.

Nearly 90% of workers who responded to a survey by Headspace claimed they felt moderately to severely stressed in the past month, and almost half of employees stated that they dreaded work every week. Everyone has occasional bad days at work. But, in general, this isn’t the way work should be. Work should be fun — maybe not all the time, but regularly. Everyone is born with an instinct to learn new things and then apply them. When you use your skills to make a difference, work is inherently enjoyable.

Having fun at work isn’t synonymous with a sense of purpose. Work can be purposeful and yet largely devoid of fun. You’re only granted so many days on Earth. So, don’t think solely of sacrifice and future rewards. Choose to pursue fun now.

To create more opportunities for fun at work, recall experiences that bring you — or your team — joy. Focus on enabling more of those moments. Dr. Peter Attia noted that during his time as a surgeon at Johns Hopkins, his team successfully performed more than a dozen kidney transplants while listening to audio clips from the comedy Napoleon Dynamite. Shut out distractions...

About the Author

Bree Groff is a senior adviser at SYPartners and the former CEO of the consulting firm NOBL.

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