The Office Playground Blog

April is National Autism Awareness Month

April is National Autism Awareness Month. Autism is a complex spectrum disorder that affects kids and adults. To learn more about Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) visit The Autism Society Web Site.

Office Playground has a wide variety of toys that can help people facing the unique challenges of autism find some relaxation and fun. Fidget toys provide a unique tactile experience with different textures. Some toys with sound or repetitive actions are relaxing and comforting. There are also toys for developing large motor skills, fine motor skills, and coordination.

See Autism Toys from Office Playground here.

Image courtesy of Beverly.

Top 10 Toys that Promote Creativity

How important is creativity in your job? Being "creative" and thinking "outside of the box" are huge business buzzwords these days. We don't claim to be business consultants who can help you creatively "re-engineer, re-organize or re-invent" your business model. We do claim to be experts at playing with creative toys at work. We believe that if you can express creativity with desk toys daily, the bigger picture stuff will fall into place naturally. To make sure you have the right creativity toys on your desk or meeting room table, we have compiled a list of our Top 10 Toys that Promote Creativity.

Often, it's hard to have a breakthrough moment when you are focusing too hard on finding a solution. By playing with toys, you actively work your brain while giving your subconscious a chance to come up with the answer. With these fun office toys, you can maintain a clever and productive mind while creating sculptures, shapes or designs from putty, magnetic art, or buildable puzzles. Have a pumped up brainstorming session with a fun shaped wipe-off board. Take your drawings and doodles to the next level with a pin art board, magnetic drawing board, or Wikki Stix.

Check out our Top 10 Toys that Promote Creativity. What will you create?

		Magnetic Cubism
		Human Pyramid - Color
		Thinking Putty - Chameleon
		Wikki Stix
		Ball of Whacks - Red
		Incrediwall - Talk Bubble 24x18
		Executive Sandbox - Day at the Beach
		Finger Drums
		Etch A Sketch Keychain
		Pin Art - Metal 5x7"

Are you inspired? Send us a photo of your creation using a product from Office Playground for the chance to win a free surprise gift. Send entries to officetoyguy@officeplayground.com by 2/28/2010. Click here for more details.

Playfully,

Bill Ross
The Office Toy Guy
OfficeToyGuy@OfficePlayground.com

www.OfficePlayground.com
We help you play on company time.

Buckyballs - The Toy of the Year!

Everybody is talking about Buckyballs! This set of 216 rare Earth magnets can be manipulated into an endless amount of shapes, patterns and designs. They're great for relieving office boredom and getting through the daily grind. How you play with Buckyballs is really up to your imagination: create geometrical shapes, letters, animals, or even one of a kind jewelry. We can talk all day about this cool magnetic toy, but let's see what others have to say.

• Rolling Stone proclaims Buckyballs as the "Toy of the Year."
• Entertainment Weekly says Buckyballs are "much more satisfying than a stress ball."
• Real Simple magazine calls them addictive: "Payment for addiction therapy not included."
• People magazine added Buckyballs to their Stocking Stuffers gift guide.
• Esquire says they're "just like Silly Putty but made of metal. There's no better desk toy."

They were also seen in Maxim and Wired magazines and on the Good Morning Texas TV show.

How can you get your hands on a set of Buckyballs of your own? We've got them at OfficePlayground.com for just $29.99.

Be the Best Secret Santa Ever!

Image Credit: Michael Wade   What is the most embarrassing thing that can happen to you at work during the holidays? Sure, getting too drunk at the company holiday party, telling the CEO he looks like Screech and photocopying your behind are all pretty bad. But, we're talking about never being able to live down being a lame Secret Santa. Maybe you didn't even want to participate in the first place. Some people don't believe in Santa anymore. Yet, we all still stand in line to pick one of our co-worker's names out of a hat. You don't have to dread the workplace Secret Santa. The Office Toy Guy wants you to embrace it! This year, your co-workers will refer to you as the most amazing Secret Santa gift giver in company history. Or, at least they will think you are really cool and thoughtful for getting them such an awesome gift. OfficePlayground.com is ready to help you be the best Secret Santa gift giver you can be. Check out these unique gift ideas for your next Secret Santa exchange and really nail it this year!

Dependable and Classy Need to play it a little safe while making a good impression? Give a Zen Garden, Newton's Cradle, Kinetic Motion or Liquid Motion. Zen Gardens Newton's Cradles Kinetic Motion Liquid Motion Vulgar and Irreverent Do your co-workers appreciate low brow humor? Are your company's policies a little loose? Share a chuckle over our Vulgar Stuff and Desk Toys. Vulgar Stuff Desk Toys Cute and Cuddly A desktop plant or an animal toy will win you the cutest gift award. There are many adorable items in Desktop Gardening and Animal Toys. Desktop Gardening Animal Toys Stress Relieving If everyone is stressed out in your office, you can't go wrong with a Stress Ball, Stress Reliever or Foam Stress Toy. Stress Balls Stress Relievers Foam Stress Toys Silly Yet Practical Sometimes goofy can be useful. Give a Funny Office Supply or Gumball Machine for a fun twist on the regular. Funny Office Supplies Gumball Machines

You don't have to be a lame Secret Santa this year. Just make your picks, place your order and we'll get that awesome Secret Santa gift to you really fast. We wish you the best at your holiday office party and may you be remembered for your non-lame Secret Santa gift and not for dancing with a lampshade on your head. Lamelessly, Bill Ross The Office Toy Guy OfficeToyGuy@OfficePlayground.com www.OfficePlayground.com We help you play on company time.

Silly Putty — The Great American Mistake

Many products have been created or discovered by accident and Silly Putty might be one of the most popular and best selling mistakes of all time.

During World War II there was a shortage of rubber in the United States. The government funded research into synthetic rubber compounds in an attempt to solve this shortage. Silly Putty was created in 1943 during this pursuit. The new product had useful qualities: it bounced like rubber, stretched like taffy and had adhesive qualities; it also broke into pieces and had the ability to lift pencil marks off paper. However, Silly Putty was not the sought-after substitute for rubber.

Silly Putty was called Nutty Putty when the little pink blob made of silicone polymers packaged in an egg-shaped plastic container made its debut as a toy in 1949. Its sales soared to the top of the toy chart that year. In 1961, Silly Putty went worldwide. It even reached the Moon in 1968, courtesy of the Apollo 8 astronauts who used it to secure their tools in zero-gravity.

After its success as a toy, Silly Putty was found to be useful in medical and scientific fields. It is widely used by physical therapists for rehabilitative therapy of hand injuries and as a fidget item for stress reduction. A number of other brands have emerged which alter the material's properties offering different levels of resistance, color and size of the product. Some of the names it is marketed under are Power Putty, TheraPutty, Thinking Putty and Bouncing Putty.

To date, Silly Putty has sold over 300 million eggs. Crayola, LLC (formerly the Binney & Smith company), which also owns Crayola crayons, owns the trademark name Silly Putty and currently sells 20,000 units per day.

It doesn't look like this American icon has to worry about popularity as its unique qualities continue to provide fun, exercise and stress relief to users of all ages all over the world.

Image courtesy of Eugene Peretz.

Expert Says Business Meetings Need Toys

We've been hearing more and more lately from our customers that they want to have a little more fun during their meetings and training sessions. Apparently the experts are saying the same thing. One of the thought leaders in the business meetings arena, Michael Begeman, uses several strategies for creating effective meetings. In an interview with Fast Company, an innovative business magazine, Begeman reveals how he makes his meetings better.

Here are the steps Begeman uses to create positive and efficient meetings:

• Start with a plan
• Know the type of conversation the meeting should have
• Play by the meeting’s rules
• Schedule time for small talk to get it out of the way
• Hand out toys
• Get feedback

He hands out toys? Go figure. For a meeting with a group of senior executives he handed out a mouse pad and a stress ball. He also recommends Slinkys in meeting rooms. Begeman has found that "when people have something to play with, when they can get more of their body involved in what they're doing, they become more creative."

To read the full article from Fast Company, click here.

Better Meetings with Toys

You can improve your business meetings by using office toys. Here are some ways to get more out of your next training session, company-wide meeting or weekly team reviews.

Attention span – Keep their hands busy and their minds open. Hand out office toys to keep attendees focused. Attention spans will increase if attendees have something to manipulate in their fingers. If meeting goers are busy fidgeting with a Tangle or Magic Loop, they will listen and retain more content.

Attendance – If employees know that toys are given out at a meeting, they will show up and will stay to the end. Give toys to employees who arrive on time. If they arrive late, they don't get a toy. Late arrivers will be very disappointed. On the flip side, give an office toy to folks who stay for the entire meeting. It'll be a fun reward for staying.

Participation – Encourage people to give feedback and get involved in the meeting by giving office toys to audience members who ask good questions or who are the first to answer. The entire room will be on the edge of their seats, absorbing everything you say.

Bowl of Office Toys – Place a bunch of small inexpensive toys in a bowl or basket in the middle of the table or near the door. Choose office toys that are all the same style or a variety. Be sure to pick "quiet" office toys so they aren't a distraction during the meeting. Foam Stress Balls, Thredz-Flex Ziggy Variegated, Bendeez Confetti are all good examples. Folks should return the office toys to the basket after the meeting to be used next time.

Handouts/Rewards – Keep a variety of office toys on hand to give out during the meeting. Popular office toys such as Newton's Cradle 5" Silver or Mini Deluxe Zen Garden are great rewards for reaching certain business objectives, making a quota or staying within budget. Fun office toys, such as Happy Face Stress Ball or Laughing Stress Ball are great handouts for folks who participate and for positive attitudes. Extremely affordable items such as Stretchy Body Bits and Funny Monster Clips are ideal for folks who arrive on time or answer/ask questions.

Props and Games - Use office toys as props to support your lessons. Themed office toys help reinforce key ideas and points. Trainees will be reminded of important messages long after the meeting has ended. For example, use an Affirmation Ball to reinforce positive customer service behavior or a Beach in a Box to remind your sales staff of the trip for folks who reach annual goals. Create teambuilding exercises by playing games with office toys. Participants are sure to bond over a Boss Toss competition, Downtown Shootout or Basket Case Hoop Game.

Let's face it, business meetings aren't on the top of everyone's list of favorite things to do. But, they are a necessary part of the operation. Take it from us, business people love to play with office toys and will respond favorably if you incorporate them into your next meeting. So, go ahead and give it a try!