Holiday spirit at work

Many people feel gloomy this holiday season. As markets collapse, many employers are eliminating jobs, cutting out bonuses, and cancelling holiday parties. Any company that spends any money in helping its executives take breaks and relax during their extreme efforts to stay afloat are scrutinized and condemned by the media.

How can we find a good balance, continue to work hard at work and yet, bring the hope of the holiday spirit to the workplace?

1)      As a boss, you may be asking your workforce to work even harder than before so as to keep their job and help the company move forward. It will be of essence for you to allocate time and suggest ways to relax and recover from so much work. If you don’t, you may run the risk of completely exhausting your loyal employees.

2)      You may not have any allocated money for a holiday party this year. On the other end, you have the power to take a couple of hours out of your busy schedules and have a party. There is no need for expensive food or decoration. Each employee may share a dish, and you may provide the drinks (or each person may provide their drinks too).

3)      You may have always given a gift to your employees during this season: a turkey for Thanksgiving, iPods or other goodies. While you may be unable to host a gift party this year, you can still host a gift exchange where each employee creates something special for other coworkers.

There are ways to be creative and carry the holiday spirit at work. I’d love to hear about your ideas so as to share with others who may be struggling with this issue too. What does your company do over the holidays? What is your company doing now? What alternatives are you planning for your workplace?