Advantages of Attending Your Office Holiday Get-Together

An office party is one of those places that actually offer career advancement opportunities. Excessive drinking and flirting are activities you should shun when at an office party. The decisions within an organization can actually be altered positively or otherwise by different factors, such as cultural fits. Also, being recognized by name can help you land a good promoted and also meeting people can help you increase the information you get access to.

Thus, these holiday gatherings and office parties are ideal places to have one-on-one conversations with superior officers. According to an author, Gayle Hallgren-Rezac, the parties serve as a networking ground and also as an opportunity to converse with those you do not know.

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That the relevant people recognize you by name can help you land a promotion

Different activities may have started to occupy your time this season and you probably do not intend to have any social interaction with other workers when it isn’t work related. However, you should consider attending the office party. According to a career coach, Matt Youngquist, several promotional and corporate decisions such as the times layoffs will happen are linked to skills as much as it is to cultural fit.

Attending the corporate social functions shows that you have a team playing spirit. This perception may prove useful in building your relationships as you forge ahead in your career. According to Hallgren, the parties give you permission to talk to others you don’t know and to generally network. Below are some things you should do this season.

1. Help In Planning The Party

Your company may be all about using volunteers for planning the party and you should consider volunteering and being a part of the party planners. That shows your team spirit and also helps you to meet people from other departments which ultimately puts you at an advantaged position. Youngquist noted that it gives those who are introverts something they can do. Don’t forget to greet people who come in as that is another networking opportunity.

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Volunteer to be a part of the planning committee for your office party

2. Set Up Meet list

You should know who you are ready to face-time with before the commencement of the party. Also, you can carry out a little research to know more about the people you are conversing with. An author, Judy Robinett said you should try to identify some people and ensure you build a connection with them.

3. Don’t Banter Excessively

It is true that meeting new people and networking, in general, would have a positive effect on your career. However, the party is not the place where you can lobby to get a promotion or where you keep complaining about other employees or the problems you are presently encountering.

In a case where you find that your conversation would be with a person who is way older, you can start by establishing the kind of person you are, the things you do and your recent accomplishments as well as the thing you are expecting next year.

In a case when the conversation is between you and another colleague who works in a different department, then you could ask them about the roles they play as well as any of the initiatives they are currently working on. Ensure that the conversation is actually personal.

4. Avoid Negative Conversations

According to Robinett, you should avoid negativity and try to stay positive. Robinett added that most times, those who are optimistic, positive and also inspire other people to keep working hard are the ones who land good promotion.

5. Try Staying Off Your Phone

You might actually get tempted to consider staying on your phone. However, that can make your bosses think that you have no interest in being a team player. Youngquist recommends that if you find meeting new faces intimidating then it might help if you determine beforehand the actual number of new people you are interested in meeting.

6. Establish a Plan For Follow Up

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Leaving the party isn’t the end of your work. It is still important that you try to follow up those people you have newly met. Youngquist said relationships are not one-way interaction and there is a need to have follow-up steps. That could simply be setting up a LinkedIn connection or meeting up for coffee or having a lunch date soon enough.