These 3 Tips Will Help You Rule the Office Holiday Party
'Tis the season to come out of your cubicle and blow off some steam.
Yes, it's office holiday party season. Heck, there's even a movie about it.
We all know the gist of appropriate behavior, right? Don't get sloshed and don't make out with a co-worker. Those are the obvious, but there are other points to remember if you want to turn the office holiday party into a night to remember for all the right reasons. Here are a few to help you navigate the evening. Feel free to add them your arsenal of appropriate behavior.
Don't Go Viral
You know what we're talking about. You decide to hit the karaoke machine and your over-the-top version of Journey's "Don't Stop Believin'" that ends with you slithering on the ground with a urinal cake wedged down your pants ends with three co-workers who remain deaf until New Year's. You start breakdancing to try and lighten the mood and wind up kicking a shoe in your boss' face and giving him a bloody nose. You get into a shouting match with the bartender and insult him like you're an entitled jerk taking out his anger on an Uber driver. The next thing you know you're a YouTube star and Tosh 2.0 comes knockin' to mercilessly pick on you.
Don't Just Talk About Work
You don't want to be this guy, do you? He's the one who can't stop talking about last month's figures or this month's gains or, heck, even how warm the office gets. Chill out, buddy. Talk about your family, where you're going to spend the holidays, where you grew up -- anything besides work. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy and a total snooze at this bash.
Don't Be A Joker
The office holiday party is a great time to unwind, but it's a bad time to unwind too much. You think it's funny to show up dressed as a clown (or like Tom Hanks in Big. See below)? You're wrong. It's a holiday party, not a costume party (and side note -- wearing a clown get-up is a bad idea at costume parties, too). You'll scare the bejesus out of people, lose out on any chance you had of getting the promotion and cause a panic because you cannot joke about clowns anymore. While you want to stand out, you don't want to do it a way that will cause people to look down when they pass you in the halls when you all return to work.