How Much Fun Can Work Be? Meet Andrew Smith.

Are you stuck flipping burgers, or in a cubicle wearing a headset, and hating every single minute of your working day? Welcome to the real world. It’s sad to say that many workers are trapped in just that kind of scenario.

If you need a bit of inspiration, though, then let me tell you about Andrew Smith. He first came to my attention as I was reading a blog by Casey Chan on the Web site Sploid.Gizmodo.com. Casey wrote a really interesting article about Andrew, who is, simply stated, the guy you’d just love to trade places with.

Andrew’s job is Chief Funster. I’m not kidding—Chief Funster—in New South Wales, Australia. How did he get the job? He won a contest. Again, no kidding—move over, American Idol.

All Andrew Smith does is have fun. And for six months of just having a total blast, he’s making a small fortune. His role is nothing more nor less than to have a minute of fun for every square kilometer in New South Wales. I’ll spare you the need to Google the total acreage—it adds up to 802,000 minutes of fun.

To name just a few of the kinds of fun Andrew has had over the course of what simply must be a horrible, onerous job (she said with a wink), he has abseiled down the Blue Mountains, skydived and driven with The Stig, hurtled down a 91-meter water slide, and been chased by a huge pig at a country music festival. He’s also hung out with 18,000 (count ’em) Elvi at the Parkes Elvis Festival. (Oh, and in case you were wondering, “Elvi” is the plural form for Elvis impersonators.)

Once Andrew’s job is finished, he will have earned six figures, just for having fun. Oh, the responsibilities!

Of course not everyone is going to end up with a job like Andrew’s—it really is one of a kind. But it makes you think, doesn’t it? Why does work have to be a drag?

If you’re stuck in your job, why not think about the things you love to do—and then find ways to do them? There might not be a whole lot of “want” ads out there asking for someone to play on water slides, but there has to be something that would appeal to you.