Yay it’s 1st December today! That time of year when the warm beer and mince pies make an appearance and everyone dons their best party gear or really bad Christmas jumper. Yes, it’s the office Christmas party! Now, here at LOVElife we like to stick to matters of the heart but let’s face it, who hasn’t made a beeline for the gorgeous girl from accounts or hot guy from marketing after one drink too many…
But fun as it is to let your hair down after a long working year, the lethal cocktail of booze in the work place more often than not leads to things you’ll really, no really regret. A survey last year even revealed that 20 per cent of people have ‘sexted’ someone they shouldn’t after the party, 15 per cent have cheated on a partner, 20 per cent have divulged a secret and 10 per cent have posted something on Facebook and regretted it – oops! So if you have ‘party’ marked in your diary in red pen, here are some top do’s and don’ts.
Repeat after us:
DON’T drink too much: This is stating the obvious but take it easy on the drinks and pace yourself. Everyone likes to let their hair down but slurring and falling over in front of your colleagues is not a great idea. Booze make us far more confident and blurs the lines of what’s appropriate and what really isn’t. Remember. We live in a digital age where things can be shared in real time and digitally exist, oh, for…ever.
DON’T look for romance: While many of us have our eye on someone in the office the Christmas party is not the place to pursue it. And whatever you do, don’t decide to hook up with a colleague for fun because as well as possibly regretting it in the morning, it may get in the way of your work. Awkward.
DO eat: If food is off the menu (or canapés are promised), always have something to eat beforehand, like a sandwich or pasta, so you’re not starving or hanging by the buffet table.
DON’T gossip: Keep small talk general. Parties are not the time to slate the boss/discuss who is about to be sacked/what everyone earns. Think general topics like families, weekend plans and holidays. Office gossip and alcohol never mix. You are far more likely to say inappropriate things you’ll regret that will circulate the office for weeks or months. Your boss WILL get to hear about it. Yep.
DO dress appropriately: The office party isn’t the place to try out your new bum-skimming dress or bad suit. By all means be glam, but make sure you know what the dress code is and stick to it. Think classy. Think ‘does this outfit work if manage to take a booze-induced stumble’ which you won’t, cos you read point one…
DO mingle: While everyone has their friends at work, make an effort to mingle. It’s a good opportunity to talk to people that you might not speak to normally and who knows, you may get chatting to a fit single that you didn’t know you worked with.
Lastly. Don’t go near the photocopying machine. Just don’t..
Do you have any Christmas party goss you want to share? We won’t tell…
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