Celebrate the Little Things

Imagine a workplace that celebrated the smaller holidays like we used to celebrate them in elementary school.

Many of us remember exciting days in school like Valentine’s Day, Halloween, and St. Patrick’s Day. As a kid, we looked forward to the fact that the day would look different. Something new and exciting was going to happen that day, even if it was just that everyone would have a green shirt on.

At Elevate, we completely agree that getting a day off is a great perk of celebrating major holidays, but we think that holidays that do not result in a day off can be enjoyable as well.

The problem is, many offices often overlook the opportunity to seize the excitement of smaller holidays as a way to bond. In reality, these are great days to spice up the work environment and keep your culture fresh. Your company’s culture and the interests of your employees should guide your celebrations!

What do small celebrations do for your office? Everyone likes to know that their contributions and efforts throughout the year are making an impact on the company’s success. Let’s be real… it’s hard to care about the work we do everyday if we don’t care about the people that surround us during the work week.

Do you want to know how to catalyst caring connections in the workplace? As you may know from our focus this month, we are passionate about icebreakers. We truly believe they help jump-start conversation, relieve stress, and make connections. They come in all different sizes, themes, interactions, and spans of time. There is an icebreaker for everyone and every event.

Many of us have this misconception that icebreakers are only used with people we just met, but we can play a game, have a conversation, or do something out of the ordinary at any point in a relationship in order to strengthen it. Building up your team helps you care more about the work you do each day.

This year for Valentine’s Day, our team leaders displayed some pink and red treats for our team to indulge in, encouraged watching part of a cheesy Netflix movie during lunch, and asked us to answer the icebreaker question: “what is one thing you love about yourself?”

This question was difficult for some of us to answer at first, but it gave all of us the opportunity to bond as a team. We were able to support one another and say, “we love that about you too!”

Great things come together as a result of a lot of small things done well. The truth is that small celebrations are better than doing nothing at all. Whether that be through decorating the office, buying some small treats to share, or taking a lunch break together to engage in an icebreaker, we know taking advantage of the small stuff is important.

If you are looking for a way to jump-start conversations between your employees, take advantage of the small holidays. Undertake an icebreaker. Ask a fun and thought-provoking question and spend some quality time together.

Don’t know where to start? Check out our Youtube Icebreaker Playlist. Get back to your elementary school roots and utilize the small stuff to maximize your impact. Be a celebrator.