Another boring day at the office? We've all had them. Sitting at our desks, tapping the same grubby, biscuit crumb-infested keyboard, answering the same old phone.

But occasionally, some organisations do something to different to relieve the monotony. Staff stick a red nose on for charity or copy the American idea of "dressing-down" in casual clothes on Fridays.

Nothing too drastic, just a little break from the norm - although I must add that I've never done either. I'm all for giving to charity but as a woman who has never felt bold enough to wear lipstick, I'm loath to strap on a plastic nose for a day.

And to be honest, my clothing is always so casual that "dressing down" would mean going to work in my dressing gown.

However much you love or hate them, such incentives are said to increase morale and productivity. And the latest trend is thought to be particularly motivating.

A leading recruitment agency has introduced "Dance Down Fridays" throughout which music, in particular hard core dance music, is played in the office.

Research by the agency, carried out in factories and shops where this has been happening for years, concluded that dance music without lyrics is more stimulating than the Diet Coke man.

Really? I can't buy so much as a crop top in one of these shops without having to stagger out to the nearest chemist for headache pills.

There have got to be better ways of getting the most out of staff than turning the office into a disco. I don't mind sharing a few proposals I'm about to put forward at the T&A:

More-Money Mondays

It's about time bosses realised that the mere mention of pay rises raises morale. I suggest they abandon the annual end-of-year salary hike in favour of £50, in cash, in a plain brown envelope, on every desk, each Monday morning - banishing forever those Monday blues.

Trip-Out Tuesdays

Employers must have noticed how some employees seem glum and disinterested in their work. They should check out the theory that a change is as good as a rest and treat staff to a day out every week. It could be the seaside, the Dales, or maybe a day in London with a show thrown in. Whatever the destination, it will be worlds away from the daily grind.

Watch-The-Box Wednesdays

It's a known fact that putting a TV set in a kids' bedroom keeps them quiet. Bosses should give the same perk to disgruntled workers to stop them whingeing. A wide-screen TV in the boardroom one day a week, which people can watch at their leisure, will raise spirits immensely.

Three-Course Thursdays

We've all heard the saying "There's no such thing as a free lunch." Well, I reckon employers should kick this myth into touch and treat the staff to a weekly slap-up meal in a top restaurant.

Strip-Off Saturdays

Everyone hates having to work weekends and to give down-in-the-dumps workers a bit of a giggle, I suggest bosses come to work starkers. Everyone else gets a free T-shirt bearing the slogan Nudity Aids Productivity.

Sleep-In Sundays

Traditionally the day of rest, no-one should have to work on a Sunday, but I reckon those who do should benefit from an extra lie-in, courtesy of their employers. This Sunday Slumber could extend from an extra couple of hours to half a day, depending not upon how accommodating your boss is, but how much you drank the night before.

I'm sure, by the new Millennium, most of these initiatives will be adopted at the T&A. Let's hope other go-ahead companies follow suit.

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.