HERE are the most popular things people do either to cheer themselves up in the office or bring a little bit of joy into colleagues’ work lives.

If you spend your entire working week based in an office chances are there will be some days which feel drab and repetitive.

When these days come along what do you do to keep your spirits up, and what do you do to put a smile on workmates’ faces?

These were among the questions asked when Cadbury Dairy Milk surveyed some of the nation’s workforce on office behaviour.

From the research, here are the top five methods people employ to cheer themselves up from 9 to 5.

1. Lip-syncing to hold music and playing music at desks (45%). If you thought being on hold while at your desk was boring, think again. Almost half of us admit singing along to hold music and playing tunes at our desks to turn the sulks into smiles.

2. Chatting on the phone to friends or a loved one (35%). It’s surely not the done thing to be nattering away to mates or your partner while you’re on work time but with more than a third of people saying it helps make their day more enjoyable, it’s perhaps not surprising employers let staff get away with it.

3. Enjoying a few chocolate treats (34%). Cadbury was probably pleased to see this response feature so highly, but clearly a lot of people find comfort in a bit of choccy.

4. Having a cup of tea (33%). A good cuppa can right all wrongs in the world, can’t it, and its amazing healing powers obviously aren’t lost on office workers. It's even better when someone else puts the kettle on, isn't it?

5. Reading and sharing funny internet posts (25%). Never fear, News Shopper has you covered on this one. If you’re looking for funny internet posts to brighten your working day, we have them by the bucketload. Check out some of these gems from our Weird section

Some people also admitted to doing a full dance routine in the office and sitting with their feet up to take a selfie – but these activities were reserved for when nobody was watching.

Despite a rather miserly 15 per cent of Brits not bothering to do anything to cheer up colleagues at work, most have a few tricks up their sleeve to help spread some joy around their office. Here are the top five ways workers cheer up their colleagues:

  1. Sharing a funny joke (32%)
  2. Sharing a snack or sweet treat with colleagues (31%)
  3. Making colleagues cups of tea (29%)
  4. Giving them a hug (13%)
  5. Making faces at colleagues while they’re on the phone (12%)

 

Click here to watch the new Cadbury Dairy Milk advert

If you’re not too busy singing, chatting on the phone, stuffing your face with sweets, having a cup of tea or giggling at the latest viral picture doing the rounds, we’d love you to share some of your quirky workplace behaviour. What little things do you do to make the day a bit more fun or to bring a little happiness to your colleagues? Add your comments below.