7 ways Asana makes work more fun

Did you know that play is crucial for solving problems, building relationships, and tapping into creativity? Psychologists argue that adults need it just as much as children. While work is a serious matter, we’ve built functionality into Asana that aims to bring a little fun into work, too. Because it can help you actually do your job better, connect with your teammates, and help you unearth some really great ideas.

Here are a few ways to bring some fun into Asana:

Hacks

Flying Unicorns

Over and over, we hear users tell us that checking off tasks in Asana brings them an immense sense of satisfaction. Some even describe it as ‘magical.’ But the reaction we get from those who turn on the unicorn hack borders on ecstatic enthusiasm.

When you enable this hack, you’ll get a flying surprise across your screen once you’ve tackled some tasks. It’s hard not to smile when you see it (or at least want to high-five your desk neighbor).

Mobile narwhals and rainbows

More recently, we’ve adopted a new hometown hero: the majestic narwhal. If you’ve enabled the unicorn hack, you’ll enjoy a celebratory narwhal launch across your screen when you complete a task from your iOS device. On Android, you’ll be rewarded for clearing out your Inbox with a rainbow.

Tab+B because, cats.

We have a thing for cats here, as you may have guessed. Both of our co-founders are fond of felines, and our programming language, Luna, is actually an ode to a very special kitty. We’re pretty sure that any day can be a better day with some digital furry friend visitors.

Team Celebration Box

Saying something nice to someone is always a good idea and praise for good work goes a long way. With the Team Celebration Box, you can see what tasks your teammates are completing in real time, and like their completion to say “nice work!”

You can implement any of these hacks by going into your My Profile Settings, in the top right-hand corner of your screen on the web, then use the Hacks tab.

Personalization

Avatars

Share your personality with your teammates by uploading a standard profile picture or another representation of your personality — your favorite superhero or power animal, for example.  Below are a few of our favorite Asana avatars.

Themes

Give your workspace a facelift by choosing a theme in Asana that represents your mood. From zen-like Valley and Mineral to Halloween-inspired Spooky, you can customize your screen as often as you like to help you focus on your most important tasks, or inspire deep Focus Mode.

Communication

Emoji :thumbsup:

A Polish Week project many of us at Asana were  to see come to life, emojis let you add fun and personality to conversations. You can type emoji codes into task descriptions or comments. Here’s a handy emoji code reference for you. You can also use emojis in Asana for mobile as you would on your desktop.

What’s your favorite ‘fun’ Asana feature and how has it made your workday better?