Ah yes, it's April Fool's Day once again. Maybe it's because I'm the youngest child, but I feel like you're never too old to pull a fun prank on others, not only on this day, but whenever your office needs a little pick-me-up.
So here are some fun pranks you can pull on your friends or coworkers.
OBLIGATORY DISCLAIMER NOTE: Don't be mean. Be funny. Don't do anything against company or privacy policies or anything illegal. These are for fun, not to traumatize or hurt anyone, or to get you fired. Don't waste company time, do this on your own time.
1. Tape the bottom of their mouse.
This only works with a laser mouse (but come on, who has roller ball mice these days?) but this prevents the mouse from working. It will baffle the unknowing victim because the mouse will be plugged in, the red light will show, but the pointer won't move for anything. If you can get really clear tape on there, even if your coworker turns it over, they probably won't notice the little piece of tape causing all their problems. Tip: Apologize to your IT person in advance.
2. Remove all the ink from their pens
I did this once and I felt kind of bad about it. A coworker had been on vacation so she was a prime target to come back to work pranks. We pulled a number of pranks on her, and fortunately, I was watching when she discovered all her pens were missing the ink because she was on a phone call and trying to take down information. The guilt got the best of me, so I ran a pen over to her. But it was really funny to see her scramble.
3. Unplug their phone handset
This one is great because the phone will still ring (make sure you unplug just the handset, not the phone line) but when they pick up the phone, the line will be dead and the phone will keep ringing. And of course, don't leave the cord hanging out where they can see it, make sure it's tucked underneath. If they use a headset, you can unplug that as well for good measure. Just remember your coworker could miss important calls - use with discretion.
4. CONFETTI PARTY!!!
Who doesn't like some festive confetti? Grab those hole punchers and punch away to load them up with a massive supply of confetti. Then, spread it all around their desk or better yet, find a way to get them to accidentally spill the confetti everywhere. Tip: Be nice to your janitorial staff and clean it up yourselves.
5. Let them pee in the dark
When your office buddy takes a bathroom break, open the door, give a slightly menacing laugh, turn off the lights and close the door. I wouldn't let this one go for more than a few seconds, but just long enough to remind them of their own mortality. And just remember, if you do it to someone, they can just as easily do it right back to you. Take a flashlight or lock that door!
6. Turn all their stuff upside down
This is another thing we did to my poor, unsuspecting coworker, and she had a TON of stuff in her cubicle. Being careful not to damage anything, turn whatever you possibly can upside down. If you want to be more subtle, stick to photos and calendars on the walls. If you want to be obnoxious, add pen cups, paper clip holders and everything else in sight to the mix.
7. Flip their desktop view
This one is maddening and usually happens on accident. Now, this may not work for their version of windows or graphics card, but if you click ctrl + alt + arrow keys, you can flip their desktop view sideways or upside down. The kicker, is their mouse won't work how they expect it to either. To undo this, just ctrl + alt + opposite arrow key. For Windows 7, you can do this by right-clicking on the desktop and selecting Screen Resolution, then change the orientation to flipped (to be honest, I was too chicken to try this because I didn't want to have IT fix it so no guarantees, but that should do the job). Again, apologize to your IT person in advance.
8. Screenshot their desktop & remove all their icons
Here's another one you can pre-apologize to IT for doing. Take a screenshot of your coworker's desktop and save the image. Then, select all their desktop icons, cut and paste them into a folder for safekeeping. Then set the screenshot as their desktop background. They will be able to see all the icons, but none will work because the icons aren't actually there. Watch and laugh evilly while they struggle, then help them fix it.
9. Send a reply to an email they didn't really send to you
Find an email your office buddy sent you and change the contents from their sent mail to look like you're responding to an email they sent you that really doesn't make any sense. They will go nuts trying to figure out what's going on. Tip: keep it clean, office-friendly and preferably cryptic, so cryptic they don't even remember what they were talking about. Because they won't remember. Because they didn't send it.
10. Fake a huge sale
It's the first of the month, so what better way to start it off than with a huge sale? If you work with salespeople (who have a sense of humor) go ahead and give one of them a call to place a GIGANTIC order. Disguise your voice so they don't know it's you. Or wait, do they recognize that voice? It sounds kinda like this person in that department. But what if it's not? The last thing they want to do is accuse a real customer of being a fake one. Let the joke go on a couple minutes then let them in on it gently. We're here to work, remember?
It's the first of the month, so what better way to start it off than with a huge sale? If you work with salespeople (who have a sense of humor) go ahead and give one of them a call to place a GIGANTIC order. Disguise your voice so they don't know it's you. Or wait, do they recognize that voice? It sounds kinda like this person in that department. But what if it's not? The last thing they want to do is accuse a real customer of being a fake one. Let the joke go on a couple minutes then let them in on it gently. We're here to work, remember?
HAPPY APRIL FOOL'S DAY!
Originally published at: http://wp.me/p1zSqF-bd
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