Holiday decorations can boost office morale and instill a sense of festive cheer that can bring co-workers closer together. Whether you’re in a small, single-room office or part of a multi-floor corporate workplace, there are tons of ways to bring the holiday spirit to your company. Check out this guide for a few easy ways to get started.
1. Make a plan
It may sound a little silly to sit down and craft a plan for your holiday decor, but a little time spent getting prepared can make all the difference. Don’t just send an intern out to the store with the company credit card to buy decorations at random!
Your plan should start with taking stock of any preexisting decorations that may be laying around your office. Do you want to reuse them or pick out something fresh? If you want to reuse something, is it in working order or in need of repair? What’s your budget like? Thinking about these questions in the initial planning stage can save you a lot of time and money in the future – especially once holiday crunch time rolls around.
2. Ask around the office
If you’re in charge of selecting the holiday ornamentation for your workplace, consider polling your coworkers for their opinions. Considering the creative ideas of everyone in the office is the perfect way to put into action a sense of camaraderie and togetherness that the holidays are about, whether those ideas are about color schemes or ornament ideas.
If you’re in a smaller space, a fun idea may be to challenge your co-workers to decorate their desks on their own, as a way to allow everyone to show off their own festive, creative flair. Remember, the holiday season is a time for goodwill and cheer – so try to be inclusive and respectful of everyone in your workplace!
3. Stay safe
Normally, you wouldn’t associate decorating for the holidays with workplace injuries, but the risk is always something to be aware of.
For example, when using a ladder to hang tinsel or a string of lights, extra precaution should be taken to remain safe. If you work in an office or building that sees a lot of foot traffic, schedule your decorating before or after hours when you’re less likely to obstruct others or be obstructed yourself.
Furthermore, make sure electric ornaments and lights aren’t sharing wall outlets with other machines to avoid electrical overloads. Finally, you should take extra care to ensure you’re not filling the office with any festive scents that others may be sensitive to – what smells like fresh, pine goodness to you may be an allergy trigger for someone else.
4. Hire a professional
There’s a lot of work that goes into decorating a commercial space, especially if your workplace wants to do something elaborate. Fortunately, there are a number of professional services that can help you through the process of decorating for the holidays, from the initial selection from a catalog of commercial holiday decorations all the way to cleaning up after the holidays have ended.
If you’ve ever been inside a large building that had a grand Christmas tree in the lobby, there’s a good chance it was erected by a professional (but pros can also help adorn smaller office buildings too).
While commercial Christmas decorations may be the most readily available, there are plenty of other winter holiday decor options for occasions like Hanukkah and Kwanzaa, especially within the catalogs of professional services. Some pros even offer more complex ornamentation, like animated displays, artfully-made garlands, and dazzling lighting options that aren’t available in your local craft stores.
5. Have fun with it
Whether you decided to stick with simple paper snowflakes on the walls or go all out and let the pros turn your workplace into a winter wonderland, make sure to have a plan, stay safe, and remember to create an environment that fosters a sense of fellowship among all coworkers. There are tons of ideas out there to inspire you. Have fun!
