Keeping your Employees Engaged through the End of the Year
Stacey Belser
The end of the year is filled with year-end deadlines, travel, vacations, and stress for business owners and employees. That can make it challenging to keep employees engaged at the end of the year, but it's vital to not just get through the end of the month. Studies show “Individuals with high levels of well-being are more productive at work and are more likely to contribute to their communities.” 1 The number of food holidays that keep popping up on the calendar are definitely getting out of hand, but they do make for an easy way to celebrate. Here are nine fun food holidays that make it easy to implement, engaging activities.
December 8 – National Brownie Day Chocolate is always a winner. There have been studies that chocolate increases mood. 2 Good moods for great employees is a win-win!
December 9 – National Pastry Day Pasties and coffee to start the day? Sounds like a stellar combination.
December 13 – Ice Cream Day A build your own sundae bar at lunchtime is sure to please!
December 15 – National Lemon Cupcake Day Lemon in December may seem strange but inserting some fruit into the mix may be a welcome change for some people.
December 16 – National Chocolate Covered Anything Day Didn’t we mention the benefit of chocolate up above? Bring in some chocolate-covered pretzels, cherries, or nuts to share with your employees.
December 18 – Bake Cookies Day This could be a great day to give back to the community. Have your employees bring in some of their favorite cookies to donate to the local food bank or another non-profit in your area.
December 22 – National Date Nut Bread Day Pair the Date Nut Bread with a Hot Chocolate Bar filled with marshmallows, candy canes, and sprinkles for a nice winter pick me up.
December 24 – National Egg Nog Day If your office is closed on Christmas Eve, celebrate a day early, but be prepared Egg Nog can be a polarizing topic. People either love it or hate it.
December 27 – National Fruit Cake Day This one may not be a real crowd-pleaser, but it was on the calendar, so I wanted to include it for the few people that like fruit cake.
Don’t feel pressure to celebrate all of these holidays but take a few and turn them into an office tradition that you and your employees enjoy. The best part about all of these silly holidays? They are easy for you to stop by the grocery store to pick up supplies, or easy to delegate to the employee that enjoys celebrating. Implement a few of these and see your employees’ happiness, productivity, and well-being increase. We hope you and your employees have a happy, fun-filled holiday season!
Source:
1: https://www.cdc.gov/hrqol/wellbeing.htm
2: https://www.inc.com/jeff-haden/scientists-just-discovered-that-eating-chocolate-has-an-amazing-affect-on-happiness-but-there-is-a-literally-small-catch.html
