Why and How You Should Embrace Out-of-Season Work Events
When we think about work events, our minds go straight to Christmas or summer. But who says these are the only times we should be celebrating at work? Yes, Christmas time is traditionally for celebrating and summer brings more opportunities to get outside and mingle, but there is good reason to embrace the off season which runs from October to November and between January and April.
Allow Team Activity Group to explain:
Beat post-summer and post-Christmas blues
January is the peak month for seasonal affective disorder (SAD) and in fact, ‘Blue Monday’ - the so-called most depressing day of the year - falls annually in mid-January. When the Christmas hype is over, and the days are short, dark and cold it’s no wonder that everyone feels down.
The same goes for October and November. As the frivolity of summer fades into the distance, we tend to trudge fearfully towards the shortest day of the year and the notion of rising for work on freezing mornings.
Employees are at their least motivated and productive during these months. This begs the question: why would you NOT plan a fun, morale-boosting corporate event in the off-season?
Yes, the business account may be suffering post-Christmas (party… presents… bonuses etc) but an out-of-season event doesn’t have to mean lavishness. Team Activity Group offers an array of simple, fun team-building activities which will work wonders for a listless workforce.
The added bonus of organising events off-season of course is that venues are cheaper and have more availability.
Here’s how you can make out-of-season events work for you and your company:
1) Celebrate milestones or company birthdays
If it feels too contrived or you can’t think of a good enough reason to plan a work event in these quieter months, consider this:
Most companies acknowledge staff birthdays, departures or retirements, but why not host a company-wide event to celebrate the success of the business. Planning an event around this not only involves all staff but acknowledges their hard work in a memorable, authentic (and fun!) way. Commemorating the company’s birthday equally helps instil a feeling of community and cohesion across the workforce.
Something like a guided tour is perfect. It’s an interesting outing and it provides an opportunity to get outside in daylight, but not necessarily stay outside if the weather is cold and wet. (Although, at Team Activity Group, we don’t usually let the British weather deter us!)
2) Host a conference to launch your new business year
Start the new year as you mean to go on: with purpose and direction. There’s no better way to do this than beginning the year with an all-staff conference - but one that’s fun, engaging and includes games or challenges.
Adding fun, interesting elements to an otherwise serious work conference - such as cryptic challenges - will help create focus, drive and motivation for the year ahead.
As everyone laments the end of the festive season or their summer holidays, this will help employees get back into a productive frame of mind.
3) Encourage staff in their new year’s resolutions
Dry January, Veganuary, No-carb January, we all love to jump on the health bandwagon post-Christmas. As an employer, you can get on board with this and encourage staff with activities such as nutrition workshops and yoga classes.
The latter is known to decrease stress levels which will automatically make for a happier and more productive workforce. It’s a win-win situation.
Plus, employees are likely to thank you for activities like these. New Year’s resolutions are hard at the best of times, but in office environments where endless boxes of Celebrations magically appear in the staff kitchen, and post-work drinks are hard to avoid, an employer that actively tunes into health and wellbeing is appreciated.