How to survive your office christmas party

The office Christmas party has been landed with quite a bad reputation in recent years, being thought of either as a dreaded obligation or even a potential ruiner of people’s careers.

It is true that a poorly organised party can be dull for employees, and that the combination of alcohol and the festive occasion can cause people to misbehave quite dreadfully. In fact, one Christmas party at a hotel in Dublin cost the company nearly £20,000 in unfair dismissal charges after an employee was sacked after getting into a drunken confrontation with a colleague.

It doesn’t have to be this way! With a great, convenient venue, great food and employees who know how to behave themselves – see our top tips on Christmas party etiquette below – your office party can:

•          Reward employees for their hard work all year
•          Give workers a much-needed break
•          Encourage team bonding as everyone can relax and socialise
•          Provide fantastic networking opportunities
•          Be really good fun!

As you can see, it really is worth holding a festive party. This is easier said than done if you’re a sole trader or a home-based business, but you can organise a Christmas party if you consider co-working options in a flexible and professional office space. Surrounded by like-minded professionals, many of whom would love to hold a festive celebration but are in the same boat as you, you can group together to organise an event. You could even invite clients and customers – after all, you’ll have a professional business space as your venue, so that should impress them. You never know, you might make a valuable new contact at the same time.

A guide for surviving your office Christmas party – and having a great time!

If you remember a few basic rules, you can not only survive your office Christmas party without offending the boss or embarrassing yourself. You can also have a fantastic time, get to know your colleagues better and perhaps even further your career. Remember these essential tips:

Keep tomorrow in mind.

Remember that you’ll need to come into work tomorrow (or Monday) and be able to look your colleagues in the eye. With this in mind, try not to do or say anything that forces you to call in sick for a week out of sheer embarrassment.

Leave social media completely alone.

It would be bad enough to say something to or about someone at your Christmas party, but it’s quite another thing to have published evidence of your party misbehaviour on the internet for your boss to see. Don’t take pictures, leave Facebook and Twitter alone and generally ignore your phone unless you need to enter a new business contact.

Don’t get drunk.

This might be disappointing advice for some, but it’s really important. When you’ve had one too many, it’s incredibly easy to say what you really think about your colleagues, offend your boss, have an embarrassing trip or perhaps even get into an argument. In fact, a survey in 2009 found that one in ten people knew someone who’d been either disciplined or sacked for inappropriate behaviour at an office party, much of it alcohol fuelled. Set yourself a two drink limit, have lots of soft drinks and if you’re going to overindulge – head for the buffet rather than the bar.

See your office party as a career opportunity.

While many people like to avoid talking shop at their work Christmas party, others use the example of businesses in the U.S. and see these events as a chance to make new contacts, exchange ideas and get to know their colleagues better.

Keep IT colleagues’ on-side.

As the Mirror advises in its guide on how to survive an office party, keep the bespectacled IT team on your side, after all they’re the ones who can see your emails!

Not having a Christmas party at all this year? You could miss out on crucial networking opportunities

Of course, a fail-safe way to avoid Christmas party gaffes and disasters is not to have one at all, a route taken by many home workers and home-based businesses. However, they could be seriously missing out, and not just on mince pies and awful Christmas karaoke.

Office parties allow you to socialise, network and make new contacts, and to talk about new ideas which you could perhaps follow up on in the New Year. You could even make a new friend. Networking is a skill, but all it takes is confidence and a little practice.

If you don’t actually have an office or even a team, you can still enjoy these benefits and have a fantastic Christmas party. The solution could be to take advantage of co-working spaces, where you can team up with other sole traders in related industries to plan an event, or perhaps hiring a meeting room for your event if you already have a guest list.

Carrwood Park in Leeds specialises in professional co-working, so get in touch for a week’s trial if you’d like a new and flexible way of working which could facilitate networking and perhaps even lead to an amazing Christmas party in 2015.