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Posted in Candidates, Employers on Nov 29, 2012 by Richard Hayden
December is here and the Christmas Party season along with it. Whilst we’ve all had our fair share of dry turkey and overdone veg at family events; nodding our heads in agreement that it’s the best Christmas dinner yet the office party poses a rather different affair.
We tend to go one of two ways at the office party, either sitting in a corner with the people we speak to daily struggling to make conversation about something that isn’t work related.
Or we have a few too many drinks, divulge our life story whilst simultaneously managing to dance like we are the rock stars we always wanted to be when we were 14.
Maintaining your professionalism doesn’t mean you have to be T total, but it’s probably best to set yourself a reasonable but sociable limit of drinks whilst still in charge of all of your faculties.
It can be difficult to navigate conversation at the Christmas party. No one wants to feel as though they’re at a board meeting but they also don’t want to hear a step by step guide of your life story.
It’s a difficult one to call but the best approach I’ve often found is to try talking to lots of different people. Sit at different tables; you’d be surprised at how much you may actually have in common with other people in the office that you never really speak with on a day to day basis.
At the end of the day the function of a Christmas party is to celebrate all of your achievements and hard work throughout the year. It’s your bosses way of saying thank you and well done, so have a good time and let your hair down a little just don’t let it all hang out. Most importantly of all remember your P’s and Q’s. Just as we like to be appreciated for our efforts so do our employers, so don’t forget to say thank you before you leave and you’ll have survived the office party!
Propriety vs Sobriety
We tend to go one of two ways at the office party, either sitting in a corner with the people we speak to daily struggling to make conversation about something that isn’t work related.
Or we have a few too many drinks, divulge our life story whilst simultaneously managing to dance like we are the rock stars we always wanted to be when we were 14.
Maintaining your professionalism doesn’t mean you have to be T total, but it’s probably best to set yourself a reasonable but sociable limit of drinks whilst still in charge of all of your faculties.
Need to know vs Get to know
It can be difficult to navigate conversation at the Christmas party. No one wants to feel as though they’re at a board meeting but they also don’t want to hear a step by step guide of your life story.
It’s a difficult one to call but the best approach I’ve often found is to try talking to lots of different people. Sit at different tables; you’d be surprised at how much you may actually have in common with other people in the office that you never really speak with on a day to day basis.
At the end of the day the function of a Christmas party is to celebrate all of your achievements and hard work throughout the year. It’s your bosses way of saying thank you and well done, so have a good time and let your hair down a little just don’t let it all hang out. Most importantly of all remember your P’s and Q’s. Just as we like to be appreciated for our efforts so do our employers, so don’t forget to say thank you before you leave and you’ll have survived the office party!
