Whether you love them or hate them, holiday office parties are back this year. Thanks to the pandemic, many workplaces put those festivities on hold for the last couple of years or made them virtual Zoom parties. But this holiday season, the in-person celebrations are making a comeback and just in case some of you forgot how to behave, we’ve got the holiday office party etiquette rules to follow so you don’t regret showing your face at work the next day.
- Don’t talk about work non-stop - You’re bound to end up talking about work with your work friends, just try not to go overboard with “shop talk” and focus on things that aren’t job-related.
- Skip the excessive drinking - This is an easy mistake to make, especially when you have an open bar on the company’s dime. But you don’t want to cut loose too much and risk making a bad impression on the higher-ups, or even your coworkers.
- Dress appropriately - Regardless of what you wear to the office every day, you’ll want to follow the dress code for the party. This isn’t the time for anything too revealing or too casual.
- Skip the politics - Both office politics and government politics should be avoided at the work party. You never know what someone’s views are, so it’s better to steer clear of those high-intensity topics.
- Avoid chatting up your boss - Sure, a party is a relaxed environment, but this is your boss, not your best friend from college.
- Don’t gossip - After a couple of drinks, it’s easy to let your guard down, but it’s still not a good idea to gossip about your colleagues, even if you did see the receptionist making out with that guy from accounting.
- Stay off social media - Snapping photos of your coworkers with drinks in their hands is fine, but sharing those on Facebook without permission? Not so much.
- Take the hint and leave - You don’t want to be the first one out the door, or the last one to leave. So when the crowd starts to thin out, that’s your cue to thank your bosses for a lovely time and make your exit.
- Go to work the next day - Hopefully you have a spectacular time at the party, but you still have to show up at work the next day. Don’t be the person who overindulges and then calls in sick, no matter how late the party lasted.
Source: Finance Buzz