Research has shown overwhelming benefits of laughter for both the mind and body. These include: strengthening the immune system, reducing food cravings and increasing one’s threshold for pain. These powerful effects of laughter are all good reasons to spend more time smiling. Here’s how you can incorporate more laughter into your every day:

When I was a project manager, we had laugh time every day on a Canon Copier Plant we built. Every day at 3:00pm, we would gather in the trailer and have “laugh time”. We told jokes, we told stories, and after a while, the laughter just came spontaneously. It was a great way to relieve stress and create a sense of team. You wouldn’t believe how many people came to rely on this time as the break they needed to a stressful day. This is certainly one of those activities that you can’t judge until you try it.

There are laugh clubs being formed all over the world now. Companies are seeing the benefits of laughter. Less stress and closer, stronger relationships result in productive employees who genuinely enjoy their job.