By: Meghan Brasher
From decorating trees to lighting menorahs and setting budgets to meeting deadlines, the holiday closing at the office can make for a very hectic time. The office staff members are all scrambling to complete all their work, making that “homemade pecan pie” and fitting all the holiday social events into one month!
What we seem to forget though during this stressful process is our “work family”. We all work hard, problem solve, and frankly spend most of our waking time together. I am very fortunate that I work for a company who believes that we should celebrate our successes together as well. When we play together, we all use our individual personalities to provide creative solutions and most importantly learn to adapt to one another to make us more effective in our fields of work.
Now, I know what you are thinking- not all of us have time to “play games” at work or have the budget for an expensive holiday party. However, there are plenty of other options for all schedules and budgets to bring your employees together to promote the “family” atmosphere and teambuilding. Here are a few fun and creative ways to end your year with your work family that don’t take a lot of time, and won’t break the bank:
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Bake-offs are another great way to share creativity and love! Office Scavenger Hunt– Divide into teams (preferably with employee’s that don’t often get to work together) and conquer! This will engage the ever sought after critical thinking characteristic and will also require strategizing within each group. This will highlight each employee’s ability to get creative and also bond over one main goal: WINNING. This also can be done at the office with little to no props to be purchased! A photo scavenger hunt can work as well for a no cost option too.
- Pictionary– Used to work on good ole’ fashion communication skills (and quite a few laughs). Again, employees divide into teams and use their best doodling skills to help their team guess a word or phrase. This allows varying styles of communication to be addressed and adapted to.
- Office Trivia– Our office sends all new employees on a trivia hunt. The newest employee has to go to the other staff members (and introduce themselves) and find the answers to certain trivia questions. Examples we use are: What is your dog’s name? What is your degree in? What is your secret hidden talent? Leadership in the office creates these trivia/scavenger hunts and we all enjoy watch the “newbie” track down fun info on their new co-workers. It’s also an opportunity to share common interests.
As we reach the close of the year, what will you do to celebrate the years’ successes with your team? Do you have a favorite activity that has worked well for your team in the past? These few suggestions are just the tip of the iceberg for fun and inexpensive ways to bring you closer together and have a good time together.
Share it below, and Happy Holidays from our “Work Family” to yours!
