Ah, Valentine’s Day.
It’s not a day you normally associate with work, is it?
But … why not?
In fact, why not embrace the idea! Here are some great ideas for doing just that:
But First! — Why You Should Be Celebrating Valentine’s Day in the Workplace
When we say you should celebrate Valentine’s Day in the workplace, we’re not advising you to scatter rose petals in the break room and pronounce love poems to all your employees.
Instead, it’s about showing your employees you value them.
- You’re showing your employees that you care.
- You’re celebrating the unity and team-attitude you share at your place of employment.
- And you’re reminding everyone why they love working at your company.
Great! Here’s another bonus to celebrating Valentine’s Day at work:
If you’re happily married or seeing someone, V-Day is already a great day. But if you’re not married, not seeing someone, not dating, recently broken up, dumped, divorced, or consider yourself unlucky in love, well, Valentine’s Day isn’t as fun for some as it is for others.
So celebrating this day in a not-too-gushy-gushy way can be really fun for everyone, not just those going home to a bouquet of roses and a box of chocolates.
3 Great Ways to Celebrate Valentine’s Day at the Office
#1 – Workday Fun
So much time is spent in the workplace that it’s not uncommon to actually know your co-workers better than you know your own family!
In fact, according to recent statistics, a whopping 91% of people spend more than 30 hours per week with their colleagues while just 52% spend more than 30 hours per week with their families. What does this mean for office Valentine’s day fun? It means your staff and co-workers deserve some special attention — they’re due!
Of course, having fun at the office on Valentine’s Day doesn’t have to take up an entire day.
How much time you devote to celebration is up to you.
But whether you simply provide some fun to break up the day with laughs and entertainment, or call it quits early for a proper party here are some super fun workday party ideas:
- Ready-Made Photo Booth
Grab your favorite co-worker or office mate and head into a ready-to-go photo booth! Several photo booth rental options are available, including the SocialPix Booth, which takes unlimited photos of up to 11 people (wacky backdrops included!) and the Slow Motion Video Booth, which takes real, slow motion video with awesome props like confetti, bubbles, or a trampoline! Your employees will love it.
- Tasty Valentine’s Day Food Carts
Does Valentine’s Day even exist without sweets?
To treat your staff and co-workers on this happy occasion, consider arranging a food cart rental! Choose from a Hot Chocolate Cart with all the fixings to warm up on the chilly February day, or for staff with a savory tooth, try the Large Pretzel Station — great for any occasion but especially good for Valentine’s day because obviously, pretzels look like hearts.
Other great food cart ideas include the always-delicious Mini Donut Station, LollyWaffles (waffles on a stick!), and a classic favorite: the Vintage Candy Cart which has all your favorite sweets from days gone by.
#2 – A Corporate Dinner
If you’d like to really get on your employees’ good side, you can save them from the heart-stopping realization that, yes TODAY is Valentine’s Day and, despite the fact they’ve forgotten to make reservations for their significant other, you’ve got their back!
How? Arrange a corporate dinner! Everyone’s invited. Food’s great. Live entertainment. They’ll adore you.
Furthermore, corporate dinners are actually a much more relaxing atmosphere for many couples than a stuffy restaurant packed with people on Valentine’s evening. Overworked wait staff rushing you to finish your meal so they can seat the next patrons. Not to mention, the bill is always outstanding (though, the food rarely is).
Treat your employees to a lavish dinner at your expense instead, and they’ll truly appreciate the gesture. Event management companies can easily arrange a special venue, organize tasteful décor, and have the event catered for an even more luxurious vibe. Entertainment is always a plus as well. Choose from fun activities like a Photo Booth, or have the event management professionals you hire arrange for a singer, band, or DJ!
When employees bring their spouse or partner, and everyone in your office can get to know each other. 95% of workers say they’ve made friends at work, and studies show, these bonds are incredibly important. Being able to introduce co-workers to their significant other will help strengthen the ties between your employees and also between your employees and you.
#3 – A Royally Fun Theme Party
Finally, if you’re feeling extra fun on Valentine’s Day, consider a themed party for your office.
What theme? Why, the Royal Wedding of course!
It’s timely, exciting, and most importantly — romantic. Perfect for Valentine’s Day!
Of course, the actual Royal Wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle will take place on Saturday, May 19th at St. George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle. The pair are said to be extremely thrilled and active in planning the affair, and enthusiasts of their union around the world are equally excited to celebrate — perhaps you have some of them in your office or are a “Royalist” yourself!
To plan this fun day, it’s a good idea to start by getting everyone together beforehand to explain the fun ideas you’ve settled on. Depending on the vibe of your workplace, you might choose to have a lavish costume contest, which employees tend to get really into. Have everyone dress as any Royal they want, and the best three costumes win prizes! Winning prizes might be anything from an extra 30 minutes at lunch for a week to funny joke prizes or gift cards to popular stores.
If costumes like this don’t interest you and your staff, simply having everyone dress up à la the British Royals themselves can be an equally fun plan! Men can don their finest lavish suits while women can get adventurous with their hats! Don’t forget the Photo Booth to commemorate the occasion! You might even get crazy with Step & Repeat Photography! Mid-day, having a British tea party could be perfect as well! For the tea party, have your event management team set up Royal décor that fits the occasion. They can get creative with table designs fit for a king (or prince!), and it’s never a bad idea to crack out the fine china. Finally, consider hiring live entertainment for everyone to enjoy. It’s a wedding celebration, isn’t it? A DJ can crank up some of your favorite hits, or consider getting a real singer or live band to do things right! Your staff members and co-workers will appreciate the thought that you put into a wild and crazy Royal affair like this!
Mid-day, having a British tea party could be perfect as well! For the tea party, have your event management team set up Royal décor that fits the occasion. They can get creative with table designs fit for a king (or prince!), and it’s never a bad idea to crack out the fine china.
Finally, consider hiring live entertainment for everyone to enjoy. It’s a wedding celebration, isn’t it? A DJ can crank up some of your favorite hits, or consider getting a real singer or live band to do things right! Your staff members and co-workers will appreciate the thought that you put into a wild and crazy Royal affair like this!
The Importance of Fun in the Workplace
In today’s modern workplace, there are clear benefits to having fun, which is actually great news for all.
Why you ask? Because there are clear benefits to cultivating teambuilding, such as unity, and harmony between employees and between ranks within your company. In fact, after the recent systematic review of the effectiveness of teamwork interventions in the workplace, researchers at The University of British Columbia came to the conclusion that “teamwork interventions had a significant, medium-to-large effect on teamwork.”
Furthermore, team building has been especially effective when it comes to targeting multiple dimensions of teamwork and experiential activities for team members to actively learn about, practice, and continually develop teamwork skills. In other words, teambuilding is not only about attending conferences together and participating in inter-office “Drink Your Daily Water” challenges. Studies show that so many millennials are drawn to a positive work atmosphere; in fact, 60 percent of 2015 graduates claimed that they would rather work for a company with a positive social atmosphere. Even if it means that they would receive a lower paycheck as a result.
Although there’s nothing wrong with these exercises, sometimes the very best way to build a strong, unified, united team is to have a little fun together — that’s the experiential activity they’re talking about, after all. Take this February 14th to do just that in your office or place of work and make arrangements for your very own office party, dinner, or corporate event today!
A great place to begin is with Pop Events — the #1 company for event management and corporate events in Toronto! Pop Events is a full-service Special Events Group that focuses on corporate event planning and organizing. Not only can you obtain all the party rentals you’ll need — big or small — we can plan your whole event for you! From venue rental and food service arrangements to games, food carts, entertainment, and more, we’re your go-to source for excellent workplace event planning.
Contact Pop Events today to plan all of your Valentine’s Day workplace fun!
Top photo “Chocolate” by Dick Thomas Johnson is licensed under CC BY 2.0