'So are we still doing pizza instead of bonuses?': Work memes to repay hardworking workers for their effort

Jesse Kessenheimer • Writer and Editor

Jun 5, 2026 2:00 PM EDT

Is it Friday yet?

For those of you who had to literally check your desk-side calendar, I bestow upon you the mind-bending power of being delusional. Although you're already clearly at a loss for what day of the week it is, this delulu feeling can help guide you through the end of the week. Coming from someone who's worked seemingly every day for the last 15 years (me, of course), I'm aware that being delusional isn't exactly the healthiest approach to your workweek, but sometimes it's a vital necessity to trick your brain into compliance.

You sometimes need to believe that it's almost Friday in order to make it there.

Weekends are like a dangling carrot to exhausted workers. Like mules braying in the corn fields and stubbornly biting at their bits, the workforce is ground down to the bone. We can't have our only goal or solace be the imminent promise of a quarterly pizza party, and creating shareholder value every day isn't enough to keep the flame in our furnaces lit. We need something more powerful than that, something like that Friday feeling.

Because we can't bottle lightning, we've cooked up the next best thing to emulate that good vibe in the workplace: memes.

Funnily enough, a good sense of humor goes a long way when you're on the job. Whether you're taking your 10-minute break, awaiting your next client meeting, or zoning out during the companywide huddle, memes can remind workers of their duty to society, which has little or nothing to do with whatever your project deadline is. Our duty, as employees, is to send funny memes to our favorite coworkers, uplifting the collective spirit and fueling the Friday feeling vibes in real time.

It may not be Friday in real life, and much of the workweek still lies ahead, but at least we can pretend to feel good, thus tricking our brains into submission and helping guide our motivation to the right place. Because when it comes to the workplace, we need more than just a good carrot to keep our careers going; we need memes.