(Click here to read Part 1.)

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Part One of this focused on some of the costs of fantasy football in the workplace. I should be clear that I have played fantasy football and maybe there’s more positive aspects to it than I gave it credit for last week.

Can Fantasy Football HELP an Office?

Read the articles below and several make the case that fantasy football among workers can be a positive for "team-building" (pardon the pun). I would agree with that, if it's a workplace-based league - definitely less so if a person is just playing in a league with his/her friends whom the do not work with.

Personally, I've played fantasy football for years and I'm tired of it. I caught myself rooting for the Bears to get sacked so Robbie Gould could kick a 50+ yard field goal attempt for more points. Adam Carolla correctly called the pastime "fairy tale football". It has nothing to do with the games. All of the NFL coaches and players are trying to win games, with no consideration to fantasy stats or even point spreads. That's why, with a gambler and also engineer's mentality, just betting on which team wins games is the purest calculation you can do, since it's the only wagering that actually aligns with the team's goals. Which is exactly why I do believe picking the winners with weighted points ("pick em" pools) or one-game lock of the week ("suicide pools") are the way to go for an office, but I digress.

Despite what I said last week in favor of telecommuting and downplaying the need for physically being in the same place with coworkers, I truly believe that team building is important. It is downright creepy to have nothing to say to people you spend 8 hours with, so let's break down the stiff work chatter any way we can, whether it's happy hour beers, a weekend fun run, holiday parties or a fantasy football league.

Bottom Line

Employees are generally going to waste time, let's face it. It's human nature. I used to waste time, then as soon as I became a contractor, I magically didn't. Contractors generally need to bill the time they spend working, so that does cut down on waste.

Anyway, if you're an employer, don't lose sleep on a little wasted time at work. If you get a solid 30 hours of productivity from your people, consider yourself lucky. (Remember this clip from Office Space, the "I'd say in a given week, I probably only do about 15 minutes of real, actual work" part is at the 1:00 mark.)

Yes, be aware of time-wasters, monitor if you think it's out of hand. But otherwise, sit back. Or if the employees are in a league, make sure you get invited. And don't draft a quarterback in the first round. Thus endeth the sermon.




Further Reading

* Fantasy Football Could Cost $13B! Should You Care?
* America's Sports Fixation Takes Over the Workplace, Significantly Impacting Employee Culture and Productivity
* Fantasy Football Impacts Workplace Productivity - Friday Distraction
* The Best Employee Monitoring Software for 2019
* How to Successfully Monitor Employee Internet Usage
* Why & How Your Employees are Wasting Time at Work