April Fool’s Day has been a long-time tradition dating back to 1582 when the French calendar switched to the Gregorian calendar. Since the Julien calendar began on April 1st, people were slow to catch on and continued to celebrate the New Year on April 1st. Thus, became the beginning of April Fool’s Day.
Save Your Best April Fool’s Jokes for Your IT Team
Now, most would agree that jokes on April Fool’s Day are best saved for family or friends. But if you really want to jump into some competitive joke-busting, your IT team is the best target.
Now, I know what you are thinking…. that IT people are uptight and do not have any sense of humor. In fact, many of you will automatically think of the Tech Guy on Saturday Night Live. However, most IT support engineers are just like you and me and love to have fun. In fact, they will most likely jump into it into an all-out joke war. So be prepared for that!
Here are some examples of previous IT jokes that have happened at my office:
Sign Lady
This is a trick of the eye type joke. All you need is a video camera, a stranger in a long trench coat, and a sign. Don’t worry, the person is fully dressed. However, they will have their pants folded up to the knee and barefoot. Set the camera where you only up to only see the back of the person in the trench coat and full view of the target’s face.
The stranger will pretend to be a dancing telegram from a loved one. When they pull back the trench coat there will be a small print sign over their chest. Film as the intended target reads the small print sign and it looks like they are looking at something else entirely. Now play it over and over again for everyone’s enjoyment. (Obviously, use discretion if the person has a jealous spouse or significant other.)
Toilet Paper Trick
This one actually had me crying with laughter. Someone put a fake roll of toilet paper in the men’s bathroom. It just simply would not unravel. (Don’t worry, there were other real rolls on the back of the toilet. After all, there is no need to be cruel!) At the end of the day, the roll had teeth marks in it!
Saran Wrap-IT
Do you have a lot of saran wrap and just don’t know what to do with it? Probably not. But you can find a huge roll of it at any U-Haul moving place. Now, go and wrap everything on their desk, plus their desk and their chair. It will shock them when they come into the office the next morning.
Pretend You Are Tech Support
Surely you have had a fake tech support company call you before with the intent to gain access to your computer. Well, believe it or not, your tech support even gets these calls and boy do they like to have fun with them. Find out which one of your IT guys has a sense of humor and make some interesting requests in the process.
Have a Great April Fool’s Day on INSI!
We hope you enjoyed this April Fool article. Just remember, the people who are drawn to the IT support profession are usually friendly, have a great sense of humor, and are very creative in their own right. Clearly, they just use their creativity toward problem-solving. In fact, you may want to consider getting their ideas on your next practical joke with family or friends. They may surprise you!
