Be ready for potential New Year’s Eve Office Party disasters

03/09/2007

It’s September and the Christmas and New Year’s Eve party season is just around the corner. It’s a time of festivities and merriment mixed in with office politics. The New Year’s Eve office party is a time when people come together pretending to like people they normally don’t and where things occur that cause much gossip around the photocopy machine for months after. All washed down with lots of alcohol.

The best way to avoid any potential New Year’s Eve office party disasters or embarrassments is to remember one key fact: you are still at work. The people you are socialising with will still have to work with you after the holidays are over and these are people who may decide on your promotion or next step of your career. New Year’s Eve office party disasters stay in people’s memories for a long time.

Here are a few things not to do at the New Year’s Eve office party.

Don’t drink more than you can normally handle. Stay well within your limit to ensure you don’t lose your inhibitions and end up with embarrassing photos of yourself circulating around the office the first week of the year.

Don’t use the New Year’s Eve office party as the time and place to hit on that one person you have been eyeing up all year. They may not take you seriously or think that the alcohol helped you to do it.

Keep your personal life details personal. Any skeletons in your closet have a habit of coming out after a few drinks. Information such as how you really feel about your boss, telling the office gossip that you had an affair or your father has a drinking problem will end up on the grapevine the next day.

Remember that the New Year’s Eve office party is a social occasion; so keep it social, no talking shop. This is boring and is the one time when staff don’t want to worry about the work they have to do or sales deadlines.

Don’t look greedy around the buffet. Just because it is free doesn’t mean you can stock up on food like you haven’t eaten for a month. Too much food and too much alcohol could lead to a nasty accident in front of your boss; this is not a good thing for your career.

The New Year’s Eve office party is not the best time or place to ask for a raise. Talk to your boss about your increase in salary later in January.

Don’t use this time to have it out with your arch office enemy. It will make it extremely unpleasant for everyone else who just wish to have a good time. You will just end up looking the fool.

Steer clear of the Karaoke machine. If you can’t sing don’t try. Drunken solo singing will do little to uplift the New Year’s Eve party atmosphere.

If a married colleague makes a pass at you ignore it. Reciprocating will end in tears, heartbreak and your colleagues will respect you less afterwards. It will not be a good thing for your career if the person deciding about your promotion knows what you look like naked.

Keep your dress for the New Year’s Eve office party appropriate. Casual but not like a Christmas tree bauble. The lap dancer look will not go down well at the party especially if your normal office attire is quite corporate.

As well as staying clear of the lap dancer clothing stay clear of the lap dancer moves on the dance floor. Again you will lose the respect of your colleagues and you will find it harder to do your job the next day. Visions of your dancing and colleagues stuffing notes into your underwear will not disappear in your colleagues’ minds for months.

If you are not normally a party person don’t become a wallflower. Try and take part in the merriment, talk to others and have a good time. Don’t become the party bore either by talking endlessly about your stamp collection.

And lastly, the biggest potential New Year’s Eve office party disaster is to drink and drive. You may wake up in jail or not at all. Call a taxi or share with a colleague.

Remember to have fun but stay conscious of your actions and how they will affect your career and work life for a successful New Year’s Eve office party.