Silly season survival tips
Drag out the tinsel and get your party hat on because it’s Christmas time again. Louise Butcher gives you hints on how to have a healthy unit Christmas party without going into stress overdrive.

Hopefully party animals won’t be seen at your Christmas do.

Photo by PTE John Wellfare

Christmas has arrived again and, as with every festive season, there are usually a mass of work parties to go to. In Defence, there seems to be a party for every workplace and base and this makes for a very busy season.

One of the great things about having an workplace Christmas party is that you finally get a chance to socialise with the people you spend the majority of your daylight hours with.

Although Christmas is traditionally a Christian holiday, workplace Christmas parties are also a celebration of the year gone by and may increase morale and encourage people to feel like part of a team.

It is inevitable that, during the year, some people find it difficult to leave to attend work lunches but during the Christmas season, most people across Defence and, indeed across the country, are also attending parties.

Work tends to taper off a little around this time of year. Although it may seem to waste time, remember that Christmas parties are a good way for officers and senior non-commissioned officers to meet and socialise with everyone in their team, as well as providing a forum to congratulate everyone on a good job done during the year.

So now you have several good reasons to have a work Christmas party. If you have volunteered (or been cajoled) into organising your work Christmas party this year, what should you do? What things do you need to plan for?

When to start planning

As most people take leave closer to Christmas, you probably want to begin organising your Christmas party as soon as possible as many venues book out early. Of course most of you will, by now, be well into your preparations for this year’s party already.

Budget

How much does everyone in your workplace want to spend on the Christmas party?

Do your workmates want a sit-down Christmas dinner with drinks included or are they more inclined to go for a lunch with the option of buying drinks if they want them?

Perhaps a barbecue or a cricket afternoon is more suited to you? There are many options for large and small budgets.

Remember, you are never going to please everyone and no matter what you decide to spend, someone will always say it’s either too cheap or too expensive.

This can’t be avoided so try and suit what is best for the majority of people.

You must decide on the budget before anything else.

Once the budget is decided, your choices will automatically be narrowed and will make it easier to decide on venue, food, etc.

Guest list

Establish how many people are going to be invited. Do this before booking a venue, otherwise you will not know how many people to book for.

You also need to consider whether clients or partners and children are going to be invited too.

If you are thinking of having a party during working hours, partners and children may not be able to attend because of work or school.

Agree on a date and time

Once you have established who is on the guest list, get your time and date worked out. Consider where and when you would like to hold your party.

Some people tend to be resentful if the party is held out of work hours. Again, you are never going to please everyone, just try to pick a convenient time that suits most people.

Arranging the party the night before a key meeting or in the middle of an important project are probably not the best times to choose.

Thursdays or Fridays are the most popular days for Christmas parties, but don’t forget to book everything early or you may miss out.

Theme

Having a theme (such as a Santa party where everyone dresses up in Santa gear) is a great idea. It keeps the party interesting. Being unique is the key. If you are lost for ideas, there are plenty of appealing Christmas theme ideas available on the Internet.

Send out invites

Email is a good way of sussing out interest and inviting people to your party. You will probably require a deposit or the full cost of each person to be paid before booking, so incorporate some time in your planning to chase up payments and finalise numbers.

Book a venue

Do this as soon as you can as venues book out early. You will need to consider any special eating requirements (vegetarians, vegans, food allergies, etc) to ensure they will be catered for too.

Many places offer banquet deals for Christmas, which include drinks in the package. Some decorations may also be included.

Entertainment

If your workplace has budgeted for some entertainment, you could consider getting a DJ, karaoke or a band for your party. Party games or trivia are also great fun, along with gift-giving and a special visit from “Santa”, and that’s just for the adults.

If there are children present, you could also consider hiring a clown or a childrens’ entertainment specialist to keep them entertained while the adults relax.

Secret Santa/Kris Kringle

Nothing says “fun” like receiving a gift. A good way of arranging gifts for each person at the Christmas party is by getting everyone to draw a name out of a hat before the party.

Once they know who their chosen person is, they purchase a $10 gift for them, wrap it up with the person’s name on it and give it to Santa to give out at the party. Great fun, especially if you pick a personable Santa.

Alcohol/ Driving

If your party is at the workplace, then make sure there are plenty of non-alcoholic drinks available.
If alcohol is going to be available at your party, consider organising some designated drivers to ensure everyone gets home safely instead of driving intoxicated.

Discuss travel arrangements with your workmates and get them to agree not to drive and to use alternative transport if there is a chance they may decide to drink at the party.

Decorations

To really make your office Christmas party grand, you could include a variety of table decorations, streamers, party poppers and hats at the party. Make sure decorations are included in your budget before buying them.

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‘What an ape, I can’t believe what he just did’

Ever been to an work party where someone has had a few too many drinks, or where most of the guests were offended that the boss didn’t show up? Below are some office party ettiquette tips to keep in mind this Christmas.

Do:

• Turn up. The workplace Christmas party is an “expected to attend” event and it can look bad if you don’t show up. At least try to make the effort to mingle a little, speak to the boss, thank the organiser and make a graceful exit.
  
• Wear appropriate clothing. Find out the dress code beforehand and stick to it.
  
• Meet people with a firm handshake and a smile.
  
• Speak to your work colleagues and thank those who have helped you through the year.
  
• Organise alternative travel arrangements (ie, taxi) if drinking at the party.
  
• Eat and drink in moderation.
  

Don’t:

• Be really late.
  
• Hang around the boss the entire time.
  
• Get too drunk. It might be fun at the time but these are people you work with and you will need to face them on Monday.
  
• Push or force other people to drink.
  
• Sit on the photocopier – renowned as one of the most common mistakes that people make at work parties after a few drinks. It’s not a good look and it’s hard to live down later on.

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