Boost office comradery with holiday decorating and activities.
Much like decorating your home, decorating the office for the holidays adds color, fun and all the seasonal feels to the work environment. It simultaneously marks the passage of time and creates anticipation for what’s yet to come. Breaking up the year in such a way subconsciously signals progress and lifts people’s moods. In addition, it is a simple way to show your employees that you appreciate them.
In addition to decorating, it can be fun to create office activities around holidays; here are some of my favorites that can be done at the company or division level:
Valentine’s Day Mailboxes- place a small Valentine’s mailbox on each employee’s desk (like back in school). Give each employee two gift cards (in an amount you choose) with note cards to write a thank you, kind words or fun memories about two coworkers and place them in the boxes on those coworkers’ desks. The CEO or the head of the division does one for everyone in the company or division to ensure that all employees get at least one note and gift card. This is a very uplifting activity for all!
St. Patrick’s Day Fun Facts- have one person gather one fun fact from each employee about himself or herself. That person makes a St. Patrick’s Day themed poster with all the employee fun facts listed and numbered without names. Place numbered sheets of paper and a locked box under the poster. Everyone tries to match each fun fact with the right employee and submits their guess in the box. The top three guesses with the most matches win golden “pot of gold” gift cards. This is a great way to get to know cool things about your colleagues!
Easter Egg Hunt- have a small committee stuff and hide plastic eggs around the office with cash and lottery scratchers inside. Place one with a scratcher on every desk as well, so that each employee is sure to get at least get one egg. Make an official egg hunt time, and watch the fun ensue!
Fourth of July Picnic- organize a park/beach/lake clean up and picnic complete with food, drinks, games, prizes and patriotic decor. Create a themed shirt for the event that employees can wear with jeans on causal Fridays!
Halloween Costume Contest- who doesn’t love a good costume contest? Five great contest categories include: funniest costume, scariest costume, most creative costume, best group costume and best overall costume. The homemade creative costumes will blow you away!
Thanksgiving Do Good Deed- volunteering at a local foodbank as a team is a great way to help those who experience food insecurity. Ask for employee volunteers and make an appointment for your group size. Alternatively, you can work with Meals on Wheels or other charitable organizations to deliver meals to those who are housebound. Giving back is a powerful way to connect with coworkers and bond over the joy of helping others in need!
Christmas Party- hosting a Christmas party is a wonderful way to show your appreciation for everything your employees have accomplished throughout the year. Often overlooked is an event that brings together all employees and their families (kids included). At the office, this could include food, drinks, festive crafts and games, a family visit with Santa, an onsite escape room for older kids, gifts, face painters, balloon artists, company tours, etc. Offsite parties can offer additional family entertainment, such as experiencing an aquarium, a museum, a sporting event, a Christmas light cruise, an amusement park, etc. Employees get so much joy out of showing their families where they work and introducing them to their “second family” at work!
New Year’s Walking or Weight Loss Challenge- Believe it or not, this is an all-time favorite amongst employees. Getting in shape or losing weight is easier when done together in an organized manner. For a walking challenge, find a local 5K charity walk for a cause that resonates with your employees and schedule time to walk before work, after work or during lunch. The company can contribute to the cause for everyone that chooses to walk. For the weight loss challenge, form even teams out of the total participants, have an initial weigh-in (hold these numbers confidential), and then hold weekly or biweekly weigh-ins and report loses/gains in percentages. The team members motivate one another by exchanging healthy recipe tips, hydration tips, positive mindset tips, exercise tips, etc. and checking in with one another on progress. The company can reward the person with the greatest weight loss percentage (i.e. a weekend getaway for two) and can reward the winning team (i.e. an extra PTO day each, a gift card each, a team dinner, etc.). In the end, everyone that participated wins by becoming healthier!
By no means do you have to do all of these things, you can survey your employees and see which ones or other fun holiday ideas would be the most enjoyable for them. Then, introduce them one at a time or as your budget permits. Not only will people look forward to these things, but if you decide to forgo one or do something different, you will hear about it because unbeknownst to you they become joyful work traditions.