No, I Don’t Want to Play Foosball

Photo by Pascal Swier on Unsplash

Start-ups are popping up these days, and it’s not uncommon to see how they all seem to agree that being able to play foosball at work is a cool benefit. This, or having a ping pong table, or maybe a PlayStation, and of course free fruit! You already know the gist.

However, what does this really mean? Why would I want to play foosball at work?

I read something from Liz Ryan in which she said this is a way of infantilizing the workplace. Adult people are treated like children, so it looks “fun” coming to work.

But I don’t think working should be “fun.” I believe work is something you have to do, and it has to be bearable, and it has to be nice. And especially, something I can leave at the office to start enjoying the rest of my life.

I believe these kinds of benefits are just a way to keeping you in the office longer and more than it’s actually necessary. You play, so you have to stay longer, so eventually, you end up almost living in your office and probably doing more work than you are actually paid for.

I don’t want that. I want a decent salary. I want the flexibility to work from home. I want a nice and safe environment. And I definitely want to get things done in a decent time, so I can play foosball somewhere else.