corporate stock images of employees posing as happy

Have you ever felt as thrilled and energetic as the employees in this picture? Are you constantly holding back the urge to throw your fists in the air due to sheer excitement? Yeah, didn’t think so. Yet, stock galleries have countless images of employees looking like this. Clearly these photo sessions are directed and produced by someone who hasn’t worked in a corporate environment one day in their lives.

Let’s take a close look at what poses seem to be the ultimate crowd pleasers:

The Fist-in-the-Air Pose

By stock image standards, this is the appropriate way for employees to celebrate triumph in the corporate world. Note that in addition to pumping fists, apparently employees are asked to yell “YEAH!” at the top of their lungs while the picture is being taken, resulting in this enthralling open-mouthed look.

The Hand Tower of Happiness

An all-time H.R. favorite when it comes to their orientation videos that highlight values of “TEAMWORK” and “COLLABORATION” (yet a definite no-no during these pandemic times.)

The Effusive Thumbs Up

Utilized frequently in articles of legit publications with titles like “The Secret to Happy Employees,” or “How to make Positivity Contagious.”

This pose is also a go-to for CEO board presentations, as they point out just how engaged their employees are (thanks to their leadership).

The Ecstatic Air Jump Pose

Last but not least, the ultimate winner of corporate stock poses that would never happen in real life… The Ecstatic Air Jump. Not only is this the most unrealistic corporate situation of all, but it’s a worker’s comp injury waiting to happen.

Seriously, WTF?

Regardless of how absurd these stock images of corporate employees are, the truth is that real life ones in every day corporate situations would probably not be helpful in decks about company success. So keep up the good work, corporate stock photographers; continue to make us look amazing and thrilled to face everyday challenges with poses and smiles that are only comparable to our 8-year-old selves when our parents told us that we could have a puppy